Multiracial identity recognition with a specific category may be a way to foster a positive racial identity in mixed-race individuals, especially in American society, where the idea of separated racial groups remains.

Posted in Excerpts/Quotes on 2016-01-11 01:47Z by Steven

Multiracial identity recognition with a specific category may be a way to foster a positive racial identity in mixed-race individuals, especially in American society, where the idea of separated racial groups remains. Actually, the development of a healthy and positive racial identity in mixed-race individuals will determine their group membership – if to a single race among the traditional ones, if to more than one (biracial), or if to none (transcendent identity). Also, the consciousness of their multiple racial identities make multiracial Americans and Brazilians able to serve as bridges among races, promoting solidarity and reducing polarization, stereotypes and bias.

Ana Carolina Miguel Gouveia, “Multiracial Identity Recognition – Why Not? A Comparison Between Multiracialism in the United States and Brazil,” PhD diss., University of Ottawa, 2015. 97. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/33178.

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Multiracial Identity Recognition – Why Not? A Comparison Between Multiracialism in the United States and Brazil

Posted in Brazil, Caribbean/Latin America, Census/Demographics, Dissertations, Media Archive, Politics/Public Policy, Social Science, United States on 2016-01-05 19:08Z by Steven

Multiracial Identity Recognition – Why Not? A Comparison Between Multiracialism in the United States and Brazil

University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
2015
143 pages

Ana Carolina Miguel Gouveia

Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Post-Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a LLM Master degree in Law Graduate Studies in Law

Scholars debate the importance of multiracial identity recognition as the increasing number of self-identified multiracial individuals challenges traditional racial categories. Two reasons justify the count of multiracial individuals on censuses. One is the right to self-identification, derived from personal autonomy. The other is social: the category allows governments to accurately assess affirmative action programs’ results and society’s acceptance of multiracialism. Critical Race Theory and Critical Mixed-Race Studies serve as basis for my analysis over multiracial identity formation and its recognition. Comparing multiracialism in America and Brazil, I verify that both countries are in different stages regarding categorization and social acceptance of multiracial identity. Neither uses multiracial data for social programs, though. I conclude that the growth of mixed-race individuals makes the identification of race-based social programs’ beneficiaries difficult, which demands the use of diverse criteria. Moreover, official recognition can serve to improve the way society deals with race.

Read the entire thesis here.

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