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Which Mexicans Are White? Enumerator-Assigned Race in the 1930 Census and the Socioeconomic Integration of Mexican Americans

Author

Listed:
  • Brian Duncan
  • Stephen J. Trejo

Abstract

The authors explore unique complete-count data from the 1930 Census in which a respondent’s race was assigned by enumerators and “Mexican†was one of the possible responses. Census enumerators frequently and selectively assigned a non-Mexican race—predominantly “white†—to US-born individuals of Mexican ancestry. As a result, using enumerator-assigned race to identify Mexican Americans misses a sizeable fraction of the relevant population and significantly understates this group’s socioeconomic attainment. The propensity for Census enumerators to identify Mexican Americans as white varied enormously across US counties, and this variation is strongly associated with both the educational attainment of US-born Mexican Americans observed in the 1940 Census and the amount of return migration by Mexican immigrants during the 1930s. As such, this variation may help to identify local environments that were more favorable for the integration of Mexican Americans.

Suggested Citation

  • Brian Duncan & Stephen J. Trejo, 2025. "Which Mexicans Are White? Enumerator-Assigned Race in the 1930 Census and the Socioeconomic Integration of Mexican Americans," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 78(1), pages 62-85, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:78:y:2025:i:1:p:62-85
    DOI: 10.1177/00197939231213055
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Brian Duncan & Stephen J. Trejo, 2011. "Intermarriage and the Intergenerational Transmission of Ethnic Identity and Human Capital for Mexican Americans," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 29(2), pages 195-227.
    2. Kosack, Edward & Ward, Zachary, 2020. "El Sueño Americano? The Generational Progress of Mexican Americans Prior to World War II," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 80(4), pages 961-995, December.
    3. Lee, Jongkwan & Peri, Giovanni & Yasenov, Vasil, 2022. "The labor market effects of Mexican repatriations: Longitudinal evidence from the 1930s," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    4. repec:sae:mrxval:v:36:y:2002:i:3:p:669-701 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Duncan, Brian & Grogger, Jeffrey & Leon, Ana Sofia & Trejo, Stephen J., 2020. "New evidence of generational progress for Mexican Americans," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    6. repec:sae:mrxval:v:47:y:2013:i:4:p:944-975 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Brian Duncan & Stephen J. Trejo, 2017. "The Complexity of Immigrant Generations: Implications for Assessing the Socioeconomic Integration of Hispanics and Asians," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 70(5), pages 1146-1175, October.
    8. Ran Abramitzky & Leah Boustan & Katherine Eriksson & James Feigenbaum & Santiago Pérez, 2021. "Automated Linking of Historical Data," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 59(3), pages 865-918, September.
    9. Martha Bailey & Connor Cole & Catherine Massey, 2020. "Simple strategies for improving inference with linked data: a case study of the 1850–1930 IPUMS linked representative historical samples," Historical Methods: A Journal of Quantitative and Interdisciplinary History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 53(2), pages 80-93, April.
    10. Brian Gratton & Emily Merchant, 2013. "Immigration, Repatriation, and Deportation: The Mexican-Origin Population in the United States, 1920–1950," International Migration Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(4), pages 944-975, December.
    11. Richard Alba & Tariqul Islam, 2009. "The Case of the Disappearing Mexican Americans: An Ethnic-Identity Mystery," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 28(2), pages 109-121, April.
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    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination

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