Behind the Headlines

Black, White or Mixed Race - does it matter?

Lily, 17
I am mixed race, and it has always really bugged me when people insist on calling me black. I feel like it denies my father's part in my existence! Of course the fact that Obama getting into power is a huge achievement for black people as he is partially african in his heritage, but it would be perhaps more brave to be labelled mixed-race for truthfully we are more 'othered' than anyone else, we, by definition cannot fit neatly into any ethnic group. However all this said, really in today's world race ought to be utterly insignificant, culture yes, but if we truly believe that there is no hierachy of race or taboo in their interaction we should really let such labels slip. Good for the gene pool too!

dot
we are all colourfull in one way or another

Tracey O'Loughlin
In response to Marks from Watford. I am a Mixed Race woman nearly 50 years old, and i challenge any parent of mixed race children to state that their child is comfortable with their identity due to their parenting. How do they know??? How can the reader suggest that mixed race chidren with black mothers fare better?? Mono-culture parents cannot speak on behalf of their mixed race children. it is not their cultural experience. this parent is obviously a black parent speaking from a black perspective. This is not the voice of Mixed Race only your child can make the claims that you are making on her behalf.

Lisa
Im 25 and am also mixed race and i think it is nice to acknowledge that i am a combination of of my white mother and black carribbean father - its funny cos we actually have our own "tick box" when asked our ethnic origin on forms which, when i was younger i was merely "other" as i wasnt considered either white or black! im not making a huge statement just saying i think it is great to be recognised - not everything is as clear as black and white x

Reggie Price, USA
Intriguing reading people's comments. It is clearly wrong to say mixed race is black. It is what is is. It's fine, no matter. To fall back on the numerous prejudices humans have and have had does not mean balck is not black. Some comments are very sad, such clear division in perceptions of what someone "is" based on one factor of their heritage.

Pat Woods
Yes it makes a lot of difference, when counting numbers ect.What are these mixed race people called? black, white or mixed race?

Jac
One question, if there was still segregation in the USA (thankfully not) would Obama be allowed to sit in the white section - that is why they refer to him as black. It is not out of some disrespect for his mother.

Bobby Smith
I am a white man married to a lovely Nigerian woman. We have two beautiful mixed race children. However, my wife normally refers to them as 'black' and wonders why I get upset by this. Ultimately, I guess, it comes down to the individuals concerned. In later life, if my children want to be known as 'black' then that is their perogative. No one else has the right to tell somebody who he or she is. If you want to know how to bring up mixed race kids in a loving environment I recommend the book: One Love Two Colours: The unlikely marriage of a Punk Rocker & his African Queen, by Margaret Oshindele-Smith

Ian Stevens
It is up to the individual what they call theirselves, for instance with Nadine it is out of a personal love and affection for her parents that she likes to be known as mixed race. But it doesn't matter. In America they say "One nation under God" which really means "All nationalities under God". We are all the same, we are one family.

Steven Harvey
I am mixed race... and very proud of it. Let's be honest here - this is 2009 and we should all take a stand against any form of discrimination. There is good and bad in all walks of life! Nobody has the right to judge anyone else or stereotype based on colour! On another subject... good luck to Obama; I think he will make an effective President.

Jan Thomas
Yes i think it does, by daughter referes to herself at half caste, which is not politically correct, but it is how so gets across her skin colour of which she is very proud. Barrack Obama is mixed race, not black

Vinette Jackson
I am so amused by the recent mixed race issue recently. As far back as I can remember, people were told that if you had even one drop of black blood in your veins you were considered black. So, why now that 'mixed race' people are excelling we suddenly cannot class them as black? Does the police statistics of black men in prison include anyone of mixed race or is it only when they excel we remember the white part of their background? To me it seems it is coming down to the same racist issues we have always had with white being good and black being bad. Rubbish- Obama is a black man, I bet that is how he has always been treated prior to his rise to fame.

Julia B. Flitwick
I agree totally with Nadine. I am the white mother of two mixed race children. My husband's parents originated from Guyana. I hear my son and daughter being referred to as black and feel that this denies part of their heritage. I carried them in my body for nine months and gave birth to them. They are my own flesh and blood as well as my husband's. I believe to refer to them as 'black' is to deny their white parentage which is just as racist as it would be to deny their black parentage. My children are proud to be the colour they are; a product of both of their parents, and are as proud of their Guyanese roots as they are of their English roots. Neither of these should be blanked out simply because they appear a particular skin colour. I had as much to do with creating these children as my husband did, they are part of me. To call them black denies my part in their make-up. I was quite shocked when my husband was telling them that the world would see them as black, but it seems he was right, much to my dismay. I am right behind Nadine - the world needs educating!

Ian K, London
I agree with Marks' comments about preparing children to understand and be confident of their identity. I however take issue with her sweeping generalisations that children with white mothers are confused about their position. I am an African father of 3 mixed heritage children and they are pretty confident in their identity. I rather agree with Mathew Ryder QC (mixed race himself)in his critique that "...Frequently in Dreams From My Father, Obama confidently refers to himself as a "black man". The book's account of a student named Joyce is strikingly familiar to any of us who have been in his situation. She shakes her head when the young Obama asks if she is coming to the Black Students' Association meeting. "I'm not black, I'm multiracial," she insists, and after relating her mixed origins she laments: "Why should I have to choose between them?" It is black people, she says, not white, who are forcing an uncomfortable "choice". Obama is not persuaded. His empathetic criticism of her perspective is followed by his telling description of her as one of the "black" students. How he would define her seems clear.Why has he reached that position? For me, it is because he recognises the fundamental error of those who try to assert that "mixed-race" is separate from "black". They have misunderstood that the term "black" has always included mixed-race and lighter skinned people of African heritage. By its very definition, "black" has not overlooked us, but embraced us..."

Marks, Watford
I am a black british born wife of a white british born man. We have one child who knows her identity. She has a strong understanding of who she is and what colour(s) she is. We do not bring her up to understand and know her white family more than her black family and vice versa. But we have also bought her up to understand that if someone dislikes her for her colour it is usually because they do not like the black side of her. Personally, I can tell a mile off a mixed race child who has a white mother. They are usually the children who are confused about their position. Mothers are an incredible influence in their childrens lives and as I am not trying to ignore how brilliantly the mixed race children I have met and know have been bought up, I think that my job as a parent is to make sure that my child is totally prepared in life for those occasions where people will see their colour first and be negative towards them because of that. All the mixed race people you have named in your article above have white mothers. They need to prepare them for life as a mixed race child which will then lead them to security in themselves and therefore does it matter if you are mixed race, black or white....

Justin Regier, USA
Certainly seems like defining a human being by their appearance goes beyond just racial tendencies but at least the beauty of a mixed race concept breaking down that old mentality can shine in these worldwide examples.

NIcola, Jersey
Thank you. I've struggled with this very issue for some years and for a long time I thought I was getting a bit paranoid. It's only going to become more complex. For example I am mixed race and I have a daughter who has a mixed race mother and a white father so she definitely does not fit the black/white arguement. We have been unable to find resources suitable for her nursery in order to explain this to the other children when they have been considering cultural issues, they just don't seem to exist. So thank you for raising this, the more people that challenge the current viewpoint the better.

Tim, Watford
Great piece and Dillon's right, what the hell should it matter. When entering South Africa during apartheid, John Arlott - the journalist and cricket commentator - was asked which race he was, he replied "HUMAN"!!!!!

Malcolm Campbell
We are all human - about time we thought that way. To me colour of skin is as irrelevant as colour of eyes - it's behaviour and respect for others that matters.

Mark Johnson, London
What a brilliant, thought provoking piece.. well done to all involved.

Dillon Parmar
THE RACE DONT MATTER WERE ALL TOGETHER AS ONE !! DONT MATTER WHAT COLOUR WE ARE WE ALL TOGETHER WHOS WITH ME?