EVENT INFORMATION

2
September
2011

National census includes Afro-descendant self-identification

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📅 2 September 2011 📍 Venezuela

As Venezuela’s 2011 population census began, public reporting described a new option for residents to identify as Afro-descendant. The category made Afro-descendant identity countable in a national census for the first time, creating a potential basis for public policy and historical visibility. Self-identification is not a neutral or complete measure of ancestry: categories shape what respondents can name, and the resulting figures depend on question wording, social context, and trust. The census milestone therefore marks both recognition and the limits of state-produced racial data.

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People in this event

Elías Eljuri

census workers

residents choosing self-identification categories

Organizations in this Event

National Institute of Statistics

Government of Venezuela