Tuckerrrr said:
it gives us political independence if we r a race. we dont get categorized as part of another group...thats why it could be a good thing. jews are now considered a are considered around the world as part of a 'nation.' there is also such a thing as a sikh nation (difference b/w a nation and a state).
race is completely made up as it is.
Good points, the concept of race anyway only matters due to its implications for one's interaction with society. That is, being 'black', whatever that means, only matters in the sense of what society allows you to do. And what society allows you to do is often what makes you 'black'. It's a very interesting scenario.
But the point I think people are making is that the very nature of independence leads to increased isolation. Being part of a large community like South Asia provides some benefits as well. It's not as simple as being proud of who you are and wanting a slimmer identification, nor should we simply assume homogeneity amongst identity lines. The optimal approach lies in the middle somewhere, probably with vertical categorization so that we can quickly reach targeted identities while keeping the number of upper-level categories broader.
