I know what you mean! Its not just the FC surveys, its all survey sites that do this as well. I am white and I also find it disturbing about ethnic background or what occupation you or a member of your household works in. I mean what does any of that have to do with anything?
I know where you're coming from, but from a merely business perspective, I understand the survey providers. If I wanted to know the public's opinion on a new product I'm developing or a new design about an existing product, from a legal standpoint, I'd like to protect myself and add that little question if you or anybody in your household works, for example in an advertising or marketing company, so my idea doesn't get stolen. Or at least if it does get stolen they don't get away with it, or if you get caught, you can't use a defense in which you're whole premise is nobody stated that you couldn't use the info. It could be stated in different ways, and more than once. It could be in the form of that question, or at the beginning of the survey, saying that by taking the survey, you agree to keep everything confidential. Sometimes it works the other way around, they are actually focused on people or their relatives, who work on a certain field; for example if I am inquiring about automovil parts, I might want to know the opinion from people experienced in that subject, or the opposite. The race, ethnicity issue, I also understand it. If I wanted to let's say know the opinion or general perception the public has about my product, and if my product is, predominantly consumed by white people, or latinos, then I'd try to minimize or exclude altogether other ethnic groups, or if my product targets mainly african american people, then I would exclude or diminish other groups participation. I could be wrong, but that's what I think might be the case. All I know there's always a rhyme or reason for all the survey nonsense, but we make a big deal about it when we can just answer the question and move on. Sometimes I've been asked If I have traveled to outer space, or If I have traveled back in time. Now that, I find disturbing.
P.S: I don't do surveys regularly, and the only thing I have a gripe about is, when people gets DQ'd well advanced into the survey. Sometimes they're right, like if you answered that you drank beer last week at a local bar, at the beginning of the survey, and then later on you forget and say you drank beer last week at a local restaurant, the survey algorithm detects the inconsistency and DQ's you. Other times it might be completely unfair; but then again, we don't have control over it, and we have to choose if whether the effort is worth it.