Numerically, the 2000 census shows that no single ethnic group is in the majority in California. Whites, the largest racial group, now account for 47 percent of the population. No, we aren't, says Professor Otis Scott. It homogenizes diverse groups of people, and that's not acceptable. Minority' conjures up negative associations, and implies superiority on the part of the majority.
Sociologists strap on more baggage.
Women, he points out, represent more than 50 percent of the population, but often are considered a minority group. It was a way to identify subordinate groups. Language is fluid, he said, noting the progression over the past century of acceptable terms for people of African ancestry, moving from colored to Negro to black to African American. The changes are being fed by these demographic shifts. I don't know what's shaking at the moment, but it's fascinating.