“Person of color” is a useful term, because defining someone by a negative — non-white or other than white — seems silly. But some white folks object to the phrase, too, because, hey, we do have color.

One definition of white, from the Random House Unabridged dictionary, is “marked by slight pigmentation of the skin.” And the term seems to be replacing “minorities,” which makes sense, since minorities can be a demographic inaccuracy. In U.S. history, “person of color” has often been used to refer only to people of African heritage. Today, it usually covers all/any peoples of African, Latino/Hispanic, Native-American, Asian or Pacific Island descent, and its intent is to be inclusive.