Latinos and Colorism: Survey Evidence on How Skin Color Impacts Opportunity and Shapes Daily Life

George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum
College Station, TX

From impacting their ability to get ahead in the country to shaping their daily life experiences and discrimination, skin color is seen by Latinos as an important factor affecting their lives and life chances. And often, it is college educated Latinos who say skin color affects their lives, more so than those with other levels of educational attainment. These findings are from a March 2021 bilingual survey of U.S. Latino adults conducted online by the Pew Research Center.

Mark Hugo Lopez is director of race and ethnicity research at Pew Research Center, where he leads planning of the Centers research agenda focused on chronicling the diverse, ever-changing racial and ethnic landscape of the United States. He is an expert on issues of racial and ethnic identity, Latino politics and culture, the U.S. Hispanic and Asian American populations, global and domestic immigration, and the U.S. demographic landscape. Lopez received his doctorate in economics from Princeton University.

The Mosbacher Institutes Education Policy Workshops feature noted academics who are invited to discuss their current research. The workshops are designed to increase understanding of the research underlying current education policy and how those policies can affect the nations economic future.