I don't know how many times I have to repeat the same explanation over and over before it is understood:
It is the minorities in the U.S. who want racial and "ethnic" categories on the census so that they can push for redistricting so that there will be voting districts with high numbers of minorities and thereby ensuring that there will be minorities in the legislatures like, for example, the House of Representatives.
The same is true for applications for colleges and universities, jobs, business loans etc. They want that information on the form because then they can get admitted with lower grades, get hired to fill quotas, get better terms for business loans etc.
Why does it matter that it is minorities that want racial and "ethnic" categories? Aren't they Americans too? In fact, Native Americans, some Hispanics (descendants of the inhabitant of Spanish Texas, New Mexico, California, Florida) and most Black people have been on the territory of the USA for longer than the majority of non-Hispanic white people. Their opinions or values also represent American culture. If they are the ones who want clearly distinct racial categories, then it means that they managed to impose their desires and shape American cultural identity. But the fact remains that it is an American specificity to sort people in racial/ethnic categories, even for official state purposes. It's a hallmark of Americanism to be asked, when filling a form (for whatever purpose) if we are Caucasian/White, Hispanic, Black, Native American, etc. In fact in some other Western countries like France it is prohibited to ask such questions for the government, schools, work, hospitals, etc. I am not saying that I agree with it. I personally dislike a lot of things about the French system (ban on DNA tests, no statistics on ethnic groups, all the excessed of the Covid restrictions I described here, and so on).
As for the U.S. not being able to forge a single identity, I stand by the fact that that's rich coming from countries where white people are separated from each other within one country.
I don't know who you are addressing. It feels it is me as Belgium is one of the few countries where 'white' people are separated from each others (linguistically). If it is, I have never said that the U.S. is not being able to forge a single identity. On the contrary, for such an ethnically and religiously diverse country, there is a surprising level of national identity.
Most of the very frequent users of this site, and most of the moderators, including me, who provide a lot of the content here, are Americans
That's not true. There are only two American moderators: you and Jovialis. Bicicleur and I are Belgian. Pax Augusta is Italian. LeBrok is Polish-Canadian. Ygorcs is Brazilian.
we're sick of certain European members constantly posting anti-American content based on an abysmal lack of knowledge of how things work in America.
I have not seen anything anti-American in this thread. I don't even understand why you are getting so worked up. What we are saying is public knowledge and is not controversial (at least I thought).