Working Definitions
Race and Ethnicity (derived from the U.S. Office of Management and Budget and ORS 943-070):
“Race” means a demographic designation for a group of people who share a common heredity.
(a). Race includes shared ancestry, national origin and sociocultural characteristics.
(b). Race is not a biological, anthropological or genetic distinction.
“Ethnicity” means a demographic designation for a group of people sharing a culture that includes race, religion, language, and other cultural characteristics including ancestry or country of origin.
“American Indian or Alaska Native” means an individual having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and maintaining a tribal affiliation or community attachment.
“African” means an individual identifying with or descending from any of the racial groups of Africa whose national origin is from a country on the continent of Africa.
“African American or Black” is a federal demographic category meaning an individual identifying with or descending from any of the black racial groups of Africa.
“Asian” is a federal demographic category meaning an individual identifying with or descending from any of the original peoples of East Asia, Southeast Asia, or South Asia including Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
“Hispanic or Latino” is a federal demographic category meaning an individual of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.
“Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander” is a federal demographic category meaning an individual having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
“Other” means an individual identifies with a demographic designation not listed.
“White” is a federal demographic category meaning an individual having origins in any of the original peoples of
(a). Europe,
(b). the Middle East,
(c). or North Africa.
(d). It includes people who indicate their race as “White” or report entries such as Irish, German, Italian, Lebanese, Arab, Moroccan, or Caucasian.
Disability:
“Disability” means a condition meeting the criteria for establishing that an individual has a disability under ORS 659A.104; or an individual with a disability is defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a person who has a history or record of such an impairment, or a person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment. The ADA does not specifically name all of the impairments that are covered.
For the purposes of City of Portland demographic data collection
Mobility or other physical disabilities (Do you have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs?): is capturing people who use mobility devices such as walkers, wheelchairs, scooters, crutches, canes as well as people who would require assistances entering or evacuating a building with stairs.
This question correlates to what the ACS defines as an Ambulatory Disability: In the ACS, individuals five or more years old who responded “yes” when asked if they had “serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs.”
Visual (Do you have serious difficulty seeing. Do you use a screen reader, large print etc.?) is capturing people who identify as being blind or low vision. We emphasized assistive technology in this question as this is important information when creating outreach material and designing websites.
This question correlates to what the ACS defines as Vision Disability: In the ACS, individuals who indicated “yes” when asked if they were “blind or … [had] serious difficulty seeing even when wearing glasses.”
Hearing (Do you have serious difficulty hearing, use ASL, cart etc.?) is capturing people who identify as being Blind Deaf or hard of hearing. We emphasized interpretation and assistive technology as this important information for bureaus who need to be able to accommodate requests for not only ASL interpreters and cart, but also sign language in other languages and assistive listening devices for people who use hearing aids.
This question correlates to what the ACS defines as Hearing Disability: In the ACS, individuals who indicated “yes” when asked if they were “deaf or … [had] serious difficulty hearing.”
Intellectual, Developmental, Cognitive (Do you have serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, understanding, or making decisions?) is capturing people who identify as living with a developmental, cognitive or intellectual disability which encompasses a vast range and spectrum of types of disabilities. This can include but is not limited to people who live with Learning Disabilities, Autism, TBI, Downs Syndrome, and dementia.
This question correlates to what the ACS defines as Cognitive Disability: In the ACS, individuals who indicated “yes” when asked if due to a physical, mental, or emotional condition, they had “serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions.”
Speech or Communication (Using your usual language, do you have difficulty communicating) is capturing people who identify having speech or communication disabilities. This can include difficulty with speech and verbalization or being understood. People with speech and communication disabilities can often have an easier time with pictograms and or texting options or may benefit from amplification devices.
The ACS does not collect data related to Speech or communication disabilities.
Mental Health (Do you have serious difficulty with mood, behavior or thinking even with medication) is capturing people who identify as living with a mental health disability that affects their mood, behavior, and thoughts. These affects may interfere with a person’s ability to make and maintain meaningful relationships; to care for themselves; and to carry out daily life functions (work, school, etc.). This can include but is not limited to people who live with depression, PTSD, Schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder. This information can be helpful to bureaus around delivering services using trauma informed practice and/or training staff in things like mental health first aid.
Invisible (Do you have a disability that is not readily apparent by your general appearance) is capturing people who live with disabilities that can limit their ability to perform one or more task of daily living but who are often overlooked in disability data collection because they may appear not to have a disability, or their disability is not always actively limiting them. People with hidden disabilities can include but are not limited to HIV, Cancer, Fibromyalgia, Diabetes and colitis. We felt it was important to capture people in this group though the data may not readily be useful without a deeper disaggregation.
American Indian/Alaska Native Tribal Affiliation:
“American Indian/Alaska Native Tribal Affiliation” means an individual who is:
(a). a member (as defined by the Indian tribe or band) of an Indian tribe, village, or band, including those Indian tribe or bands, terminated since 1940, and those recognized by the State in which the tribe or band reside; or
(b). a descendant in the first or second degree (parent or grandparent) as described in (a); or
(c). considered by the Secretary of the Interior to be an Indian for any purpose; or
(d). an Eskimo or Aleut or other Alaska Native.