Modifications in census definitions, increases in immigration, and group dif- ferences in population trends provide clear indications of change in this respect, but such shifts do not provide a complete picture of the cultural and attitudi- nal changes that may have accompanied them. Hence, in part II, in four largely qualitative chapters, we present data on more deeply rooted subjective and per- ceptual accounts of the ways persons experience and view intermarriage and multiracial identification. In part III we

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relationships among size of minority group, ethnoracial diversity, inter- marriage, and multiracial identification. We conclude by discussing what all of the results imply about the placement of today’s color line(s).

We here present the contents of each chapter in greater detail. In chapter 2 we note that reaching more definitive conclusions about the placement of and factors contributing to shifting color lines requires additional evidence that taps historical changes in legal strictures regarding racial status and cultural differences in subjective feelings and orientations about intermarriage and multiraciality. This is made necessary by the fact that certain structural changes may not always reflect greater tolerance toward racial-ethnic minori- ties, as one might initially think. As a guide for interpreting such data, we introduce four theoretical models of where contemporary U.S. color lines might now be drawn.

Chapter 3 describes in detail how the U.S. census has measured race since its first inception in 1790 to its latest and perhaps most path-breaking shift in matters of racial identity, whereby Americans may identify themselves by marking more than one racial category.