White people, rather than being a straightforward description of skin color, is a term denoting a specific set of ethnic groups and functions as a color metaphor for race.
The definition of "white person" differs according to geographical and historical context. Various social constructions of whiteness have had implications in terms of national identity, consanguinity, public policy, religion, population statistics, racial segregation, affirmative action, eugenics, racial marginalization and racial quotas. The concept has been applied with varying degrees of formality and internal consistency in disciplines including sociology, politics, genetics, biology, medicine, biomedicine, language, culture and law.
Read more about White People: History of The Term, Census and Social Definitions in Different Regions
Famous quotes containing the words white people, white and/or people:
“White people really deal more with God and black people with Jesus.”
—Nikki Giovanni (b. 1943)
“I stand by your portal,
a white pillar,
luminous.”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)
“I have often seen people uncivil by too much civility, and tiresome in their courtesy.”
—Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)