The Prized Connection: Portugueseness in Brazilians

Portugal and Brazil are historically linked. Few individuals will challenge whether most Brazilians have Portuguese blood in them. How much Brazilians understand the influence of their heritage is less known. Is their Portugueseness an expression of their social identity simply because of their heritage? Drawing on information from a broader study on Brazilians, I examine what having Portuguese blood means to them through their construction of a virtual social identity. The results suggest that most Brazilians of Portuguese descent emphasized their Portuguese heritage to me, particularly through discussion of history, language, and food. Having Portuguese lineage potentially enables them to apply for Portuguese citizenship. I further discuss the implications of this connection and how it relates to Brazilians’ social identity

Economic Hardship Among Elderly Pacific Islanders

Ensuring the economic well-being of elderly represents a critical issue for social policy. The impacts of financial instability reach beyond an individual’s overall well-being and their family relationships. To date, little is known about the economic status of elderly Native Hawaiians Pacific Islanders (NHOPI). This paper presents baseline information on the poverty status of NHOPI elders and how individual and household characteristics impact their economic well-being. Using bivariate and multivariate analysis the results show that the risks of poverty varies markedly across different Pacific Islander subgroups but that all elder uniformly benefit from coresidence within an extend family household