"Hispanic, Latino, Latine, Latinx. Who decides?"

• In Event: 40459 - Identity, Work, and Family: Latinos in the US and Beyond

Abstract

Hispanic, Latino, Latine, Latinx. What if the more productive question is not which identity label is appropriate or preferred? Rather, to what extent are Latinx individuals devoted to a particular label and why? We combine three longitudinal interview studies, which include a total of 187 Hispanic and Latino college students across three distinct U.S. geographies, to contextualize respondents’ attachment to an ethnic label and underline their fluidity. We found three groups—impartials, intentionals, and expressives—with varying levels of devotion, whose preferences are fluid and reflect unique histories. These insights encourage us to move beyond the struggle to arrive at one racial-ethnic label and embrace that the most appropriate label will vary across time, place and local environment.

Authors

• Alma Nidia Garza, University of Texas-Arlington

• Daisy Isabel Verduzco Reyes, University of California-Merced

• Nicole Perez, University of Illinois at Chicago