Mixed Race Studies

Scholarly perspectives on the mixed race experience.

There is nothing more bizarre to me than when people who identify as biracial/mixed race etc, demand that those of us who also have parents of differing races, identify ourselves just like they do. Barack Obama self-identifies as a black man. Period. Finished. Let him be. It is those people (and not black/white people) who actually hurt the multiracial “cause” (if such exists), by forcing one experience on us. To me, they are exactly like those who invented the tragic mulatto. We all have different experiences and should be free to identify as we wish. My mother is black (African) and my father a white man. I never got to meet or know him or his family, but my mother made sure that I was proud of who I am from all angles. I have always chosen to identify myself as a black woman. Not because I hate my “white side”, but because my experiences closely mirror those of black people, especially the black people who raised me. While I do share some experiences with biracial people, I have not come close to identifying myself as such. However, I think it’s great when anyone can chose who they are or identify with. I’m not ashamed of either of my parents, just ashamed of the society we live in, where people try and force you to be who they want you to be. It comes from all sides, but it’s uglier when it comes from those who have front-row experience on the pain of being society outcasts because people are unable to box us immediately. I don’t think this topic will ever go away, in fact it will get worse, no matter how much we try and wish it away. Race was born out of capitalist ambitions, invented by human beings so one group can control and benefit from the subjugation of another. That’s a human problem that will never go away. If you call yourself biracial…good for you. But I call myself black, and so does Barack. Leave us alone.

Rosalie (from NY), Reader’s Comments (#45) for article “Pushing Boundaries, Mixed-Race Artists Gain Notice,” The New York Times, July 5, 2011. http://community.nytimes.com/comments/www.nytimes.com/2011/07/06/arts/mixed-race-writers-and-artists-raise-their-profiles.html?permid=45#comment45

Existing in a Third World: The unique biracial educational experience

Posted in Dissertations, Identity Development/Psychology, Media Archive, Teaching Resources on 2010-12-06 21:28Z by Steven

Existing in a Third World: The unique biracial educational experience

California State University, Long Beach
December 2007
90 pages
Publication Number: AAT 1451152
ISBN: 9780549405887

Ashley Benjamin

A Thesis Presented to the Department of Educational Psychology, Administration, and Counseling California State University, Long Beach In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Education

The purpose of this study is to explore the educational experience of the Black/White biracial student in order for educators to become better informed about the challenges that biracial students face during their educational years. In order to accomplish this task, data were collected through open-ended interviews and questionnaires and analyzed using a combination of “closed” and “open” coding techniques.

The results of this study indicated that biracial students have a unique educational experience and that racism and racial segregation are still a problem in today’s educational settings. The findings, in addition to the literature, also demonstrates the many challenges biracial students face within the educational context, thus making them potentially at risk for various emotional, social, and academic problems.

Order the dissertation here.

Comments Off on Existing in a Third World: The unique biracial educational experience

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
				1	2	3
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17
18	19	20	21	22	23	24
25	26	27	28	29	30

Mixed Race Studies

Existing in a Third World: The unique biracial educational experience

Pages

Categories

Calendar of Posts

Links

Meta