"2 or more races" just as bad as "other"?

You sit there, looking at a college application. You see that it asks for your race. They say that its "optional", the options presented on the application are as follows. Non-Hispanic White, Hispanic, Black, Pacific Islander (and/or Asian), and Other.

In rare instances do govt documents or any document or application for that matter, offer "2 or more races".

But "other" is left for whatever is not mentioned in the choices.

Many biracial people instinctively put "black" down, whether its because they know thats how they are seen in society, or if its because they know they could possibly get scholarships out of it.

10 years ago, black people fought to not have a choice for "biracial" on the Census. Stating that there would be confusion over "what is mixed?" and that the black race would become smaller because many people who are "black" are actually mixed.

So it was not added.

But as the next census is looming around the corner, many are curious, will it be there?

"Other" has always been an insulting thing to put. One was better of putting "white" or "black" instead of "other". "Other" meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. "Other" essentially meant, that you did not matter.

Slowly the option "2 or more races" is becoming available. But the question rises, would that really make much of a difference?

"2 or more races" is essentially one step above other, but it still doesn't address the issue.

"2 or more races" is where anyone that is mixed goes. It doesn't ask what your race is, it doesn't even seem to care. If you are biracial, that is where you put your race down.

But there are different types of mixed people. How would lumping all mixed people really do anything for statistics? All that option would tell you is that there are this many "biracial" people living in the US, assuming someone doesn't choose that option because they mistake what being "biracial" means.

But "2 or more options" puts all mixed people together, under the assumption that there is no difference. "2 or more races" is the nicer version of "other" it makes you feel as though you matter but at the same time though, you do not matter enough to have your very own distinct check box.

Mixed people prove the pointlessness in "racial classification". People think "2 or more races" suffice...but only for so long will it, each group of mix wants its own box, or no boxes period. With so many mixes, the race classification list will get longer, so long that the uselessness in it starts to show.

What is the point of race statistics? What does race have to do with anything other than to fuel the fire?

Biracial is a title not a skin tone?

The hardest part about establishing "mulatto" as its own race, is the fact that skin tone kinda ruins this.

The problem is a 2 way.

There is no specific skin tone for mulattoes. Although the consensus on the skin tone, seems to be "light brown" (think Lisa Bonet's and Alicia Keys skin tone for girls, and Barack Obama's and Grady Sizemore's for guys).

But, what about even lighter skinned biracials, such as Jennifer Beals, who in some instances could pass for white, while in other instances, looks mixed?

And then you have biracials much darker, dark to the point that they you would undoubtedly think black, dark in terms of Tiger Woods (although he is not mulatto).

But what makes establishing "mulatto" as its own even harder, is the fact that black people can look as light brown as biracials.

Light skinned blacks, make it harder to have "mulatto" because, how do you know who is black and who is only half black?

It was the One Drop Rule that made it easier for racists, while at the same time boosted black achievements.

But that is the problem. In an attempt to try to make "biracial" its own race...would it simply be nothing more than a title?

Race in America, by default means skin tone. One day biracial people may get their "biracial" title...but as far as how one is treated, well, "biracial" may never be recognized racially.

Unless they decide to establish "brown skin" = biracial...then many will be passing for "biracial"? It sounds more like a calamity.

It will take centuries to undo the damage ODR has brought.

Does Environment Play a Role?

In my previous blog, I stated, that many biracial people gravitate to their white side.

Many people often wonder, why that is.

Usually biracial people are raised by just their white parents. When the only side you know is white, you more than likely end up being raised in the white world.

Its lack of black influence, that causes you to relate to white people more.

But then that confuses people. Why? Because, how do you explain biracials raised by black moms, who relate to their white side more?

Often biracials raised by black moms, exhibit more black culture in them, than white culture, but there are exceptions.

It is then based on, what the black mom was exposed to. If she herself, was assimilated into white culture, and happened to be a token, and liked "white music", "dressed white" and etc, it is likely this will be passed on to the daughter.

Moms have a powerful influence, especially over the daughters.

The culture you bring them up in, will either cause them to rebel or to adopt it as their own.

Most often we adopt.

I used to hate it when my mom would listen to Oldies music...but now I like to listen to that music too....along with many other genres.

We are all products of our environment. Environment, greatly plays a role in the kind of person we will be.

You are asking now, what is an environment? It is your family, friends, neighbors, neighborhood, enemies, etc. Its the people around you. The people in your life.

Biracial people tend to gravitate to their white side, because of the environment they were raised in.

Token?

I was often a token in High School...sure there were occasional times, another minority (not necessarily black or biracial) would come along...but essentially I was a token growing up.

What does it mean to be a token?

Well it means, you are the only one of your kind in the room.

Somehow the representation of your race, falls on your shoulders. You may be the only minority they know...and well, you don't want to screw that up.

Usually tokens share similar personalities to their white counterparts. The "token" is often seen as the exception to a rule.

Usually its these tokens, that whites use to justify that they aren't racist (although the color of your friends mean nothing)

A token is often to black people an Uncle Tom, not just for exhibiting "white" behavior, but for also "fraternizing" with the enemy.

Being a token, is not easy. You tend to feel more left out. Being the exception to a rule, doesn't make you feel less hurt or insulted when it comes to race issues.

Tokens have to be the ones to prove to whites, that there is more to being black than the stereotypes you see on tv all the time.

Tokens usually don't have close friendships with whites....they merely have an association with whites.

Often biracial people are tokens in their group, many biracial people gravitate to their white side.

Light Skinned "bitches"?

All the time, you hear dark skinned black women blast light skinned black women. Stating that light skinned black girls think they are all that.

The reality of this is that it seems like a preconceived notion. When you expect them to be stuck up, then everything they do, will come off as "bitchy" to you.

In high school, I didn't get along with black girls, not so much due to my skin tone, but because I had nothing in common with them. The girls in my school preferred gangsta stuff. I preferred dorky and girly stuff. I just did not fit their circle.

They bullied me and were rude....but most of the girls that gave me trouble were darker skinned. It seemed those who were lighter, were not as harsh towards me, some of them, actually wanted to figure out why I was the way I was.

Most of the light skinned black girls in my school, were like me, biracial. although there really were light skinned blacks, (I remember the first time I met one. A boy i liked in 6th grade, I thought he was mixed, wasn't sure, so I asked, he wasn't mixed).

But the situation wasn't much about light or dark, as many of the light skinned blacks were friends with the darker skinned blacks.

But what I am saying is, darker skinned black girls, immediately go into defense mode when they see light skinned girls. Because of this, they mistreat the light skinned or mixed girl, before they have a chance to get to know her. The light skinned girl either gets sad or mad by this...

Over time, the senseless bullying the light skin black girl receives makes her compensate in her mind that she is better.

All this time, dark skinned black girls accuse the light skinned black girls of being bitches and being stuck up, that the prophecy becomes reality and is fulfilled.

Sick of being treated like crap because she is lighter, she decides she is better, she justifies it by thinking, they must think I am better, they go out of their way to tell me this everyday. They seem so insecure about themselves.

She essentially becomes the very thing you were saying. The thing is, she wasn't before.

So who makes light skinned black girls snotty? It is darker skinned black girls.

Its ironic that darker skinned black girls expect light skinned black girls to join in on their battle...but they don't join in on light skinned battles. They are okay with light skinned girls being treated badly.

Sometimes, one can't help but ask...are the true stuck up bitches darker skinned blacks, not lighter skinned?

When in love?

People have always cared more for the psyche of a biracial kid, when they are kids. When they are teens, society becomes less interested in us...the stuff they only care about is, still our psyche. How do we hold up?

You don't see many people curious about the kind of people biracials go for in relationships. There are some know it alls, who proclaim that biracial girls go for black guys. biracial guys go for white women.

But this in fact, is false.

Me, and many others have preferred white guys over black. In fact, I rarely like black guys, usually they are mulatto if I do like them.

The problem is that its very rare for a white guy to like a black girl, and even more rare, when she is lighter skinned and not dark skinned.

But it has always seemed like society doesn't care for how biracial moms raise their kids, and what kind of guys they go for.

I am not a parent but, I would be interested to know how they parent knowing their child is going to be more of one raise, whether it shows or not.

Mixed: My Life in Black and White

I just finished reading Angela Nissel's book, Mixed: My Life in Black and White.

This was the first book that I have read that talked about being mixed, in depth. Sure I read The Autobiography of Frederick Doulgass when I was in high school, but what I liked about Angela's book, was that it wasnt really so much her life story, it was just her life story about race.

Reading people's reviews at Amazon, it seemed only one person had a problem with the book. This person also showed that they were a racist white person...but they complained that all she talked about was race. Stating she was obsessed over race.

This reminded me of the complaints blacks and whites give at Youtube when they go to Tiffany's Mulatto Diaries.

In my mind, its common sense, the names alone gives it away that its about race.

The biracial experience is about being biracial....

Tiffany even states in her description box that, this is about being biracial in America. That she is going to talk about race from her perspective. and YET, people still say she is race obsessed or talks about race too much. Isn't that kind of the point.

And its the same with Mixed. The whole point of Angela's book is to talk about HER experiences as a mulatto.

It sounds like her entire life is revolved around race...but it is not. The point of the book is to talk about the race issues she dealt with. Having to come to terms with who she was. The book was by no means an autobiography of her life.

A few years earlier, she wrote a book called The Broke Diaries (which I plan to start reading today). In that book, I expect it will have to do with finances. Would that make her money obsessed? NO!!

When you title something, people expect you to stay with that topic.

Look at the show ER...because the title is ER, I would expect most of the action to take place in the Emergency Room. I would expect that there are more than one central characters. But when I look at a show like House or HawthoRNe, I expect that the show has only 1 central character, that central character being the title role.

Angela's book is great. Although my biracial experience, so far (the experience never stops), has been different in some ways, I can still understand her and why she did what she did and why she was the way she was.

I feel as though more mulattoes, especially athletes, authors, artists, musicians, actors/tresses should get together and make a compilation book on The Biracial Experience, and have them each talk about their own experiences, and their own tips, and all sorts of things.

Angela Nissel's Mixed: My Life in Black and White, is a must read, if you are mulatto!!!

Race plays a role in who we are?

Someone on Youtube said that race does not matter when it comes to one's personality. They stated it had no bearing.

Considering that race in America DOES matter, and that its still pretty racist, its safe to say that, one's race does play a role in one's personality.

It what one endures because of their race, that shapes parts of their personalities. Race has made some people activists and fighters. Race has made some people ignorant. Race has made some people confused.

Race is apart of who we all are. We are not just our race, but one would be lying if they said their race had no impact.

Even white people have being white a bearing on their personality. White people get white privilege, they are able to ignore the realities of the world, their white world has given them heartless and cold personalities when it comes to race.

Race helps make each person's personality what it is, based on what they experience, knowingly or subconsciously.

Chameleon?

Someone once told me that I am a chameleon. They said it because I mentioned that I see myself as white, black, and biracial. I had mentioned that I did this because I like to use my race to my advantage. I feel that I should take up the opportunities that I have to help me out, since no else will.

That is when I started thinking about the chameleon analogy. There are two ways a mixed person can be a chameleon.

One can be like me, and simply change their race, be black one day, biracial the next.

OR

One can change their personality when they are around whites or around blacks....as one mixed put it, its a defense mechanism.

I do not change my personality when I am around different people. I am still my goofy, girly dorky quiet self. I am still that crazy girl that likes the stuff most my age don't like, and dislike the stuff most my age do like.

But I do become a chameleon in regards to the race I am...I change it to benefit me in a situation, and sometimes I change it just to anger some supremacist.

The only box I fit in, is my own box. I am an individual, whether you choose to see me that way or not!

Acting white and talking White?

Acting white and talking white. Acting black and talking black. Exactly what does that mean?

These were terms created by white people. Since whites have always thought their way was the right way, they wanted to make a distinction between how they act and how blacks act. Blacks later on adopted this concept, and like whites, continually use it today.

Acting white implies that one likes music that is mostly by white singers. Dresses either preppy, goth, punk, emo, girly, or skater. Talking white, implies that whites speak standard English, meaning they speak the American version of the Queen's language. On top of that "talking white" also means, one has no black "accent", meaning one does not have the deep voice that many blacks have.

Although the faulty part of this is that Southern whites do not speak standard English, and often can be compared to those who speak Cockney instead of the Queen's English in Britain.

Also a problem with "talking white", is that many white people, mostly the young, use slang, yet that is still somehow considered "talking white".

Acting black means one likes black music, most specifically rap and hip hop. They wear clothes like Apple Bottom and Baby Phat. Talking black refers to Ebonics (a vernacular). It also refers to the the deep accent blacks have.

Often when a black person does not speak Ebonics, and does not listen to rap, and does not wear Baby Phat, they are accused of "being white", hence terms like Oreo...Uncle Tom, is a step worse than Oreo because Uncle Tom implies the black person will sell out their race, selling out their race usually means, turning on blacks, such things that make people Uncle Toms, is when black people defend racism against black people (which does happen alot).

Many mixed people often deal with accusations from black people for "acting white" and "being ashamed of their black side".

White people often, regardless of the mixed person's personality, expect them to know certain "black things" because they are half black.

Usually if a mixed person associates more with whites, and speaks Standard English, and wears clothes more common amongst whites, they are often labeled "white washed". Another thing that is considered "acting white" is taking your studies serious. I don't know how an education is a bad thing.

But most mixed people like and dislike based on how they are raised and what they are exposed to.

For some black people, the problem with blacks and mixed people who "act white" isn't just that they act different from most blacks, but also because they hang out more around white people instead.

As for white people, they do not like the gangsta or ghetto image...and usually its the blacks who exhibit the gangsta and ghetto image, that have a problem with blacks and mixed people, who do not exhibit stereotypical black behaviors.

Not that I hate being mixed but....?

Often mixed people get slapped with the whole "self hater' label. Mono-racial people make being mixed sound like a bad thing.

The problem is, most people don't actually hate being mixed. They just hate the racism and hatred that come with it!!

White America makes it hard to live comfortably in your own race because of their racism towards minorities.

Sometimes blacks contribute. But mostly its white people that make living life hard for minorities.

Being mixed never bugged me, its the crap that I get from whites and sometimes blacks, that really bug me.

Its the racism, the stereotypes, the hate.

Oreo and Mutt?

The words Nigger and Mongrel are horrible words. They are offensive and mean.

The words Uncle Tom and White washed are harsh terms too.

But there are two words that are lesser but is offensive based on individual interpretation.

Those words are Mutt and Oreo.

Oreo is a more less offensive version of Uncle Tom and White washed. Oreo, can almost be more of an affectionate term. Oreo means, one is black on the outside, yet white on the inside.

I don't find Oreo offensive because I am who I am. If black people have a problem with that, then that is THEIR problem.

The reason Oreo is less of an insult to me is because when I hear it, i quickly think cookies. Its hard to insult someone who begins to crave cookies.

As for mutt, that word is not offensive to me either. Mutt is a less mean version of mongrel, but with mutt, it too can be more affectionate. Just as recent as a few months ago, Obama referred to himself as a mutt, when he said "mutts like me" when talking about a choice of a dog to buy for his children.

I am not so upset by it because I happen to like dogs, so its fine by me.

In the end, the thing about words, are that to some people, some words are offensive, but not always to others.

People tend to take anything the wrong way.

One Drop Rule?

Both whites AND blacks are guilty of one dropping. ODR is an American standard. It is ingrained in society, its so embedded in it, that it would take almost, if not more, than a hundred years to reverse the effects of it.

There used to be a mulatto category, until that got abolished in the 1930s. Race soon became, if you dont look white, you are black.

This was a bad thing for mixed people, but a good thing for both whites and blacks. It was good for whites because now there were no technicalities with race, it made it easier to target, because now they could simply treat them all one in the same.

For blacks, it was good because, at that time and even before then, the most prominent black people were either biracial or light skinned, at least until the 1960s. Because they were now all black, they were fighting for the whole black race, to help the black race, but many even before the category was removed, were already fighting for the black race.

10 years ago, blacks fought to not have a mixed race option on the 2000 Census. The reasoning, was that the black race heavily depended on mixed people. With the black race only accounting for 13%, there was a fear that if there was a mixed option, it would further lower just how many black people there are in the U.S.

But another reasoning involved was the question of "what is mixed?" it seems kinda silly now, considering, the obvious, a mixed person is someone who is the product of interracial dating.

But as I said in another blog, black people often try to consider themselves mixed (usually to downplay mixed plight).

ODR, is no longer legal...but it is still massed used by everyone. Slowly, a "2 or more race" option is showing up, very slowly though....this is probably because there are more mixes coming into play.

The ODR will not disappear any time soon, the longer America waits to address it, the longer it will take to finally come to a time it is gone.

Meanwhile countries like Brazil and South Africa, are debating of getting rid of their "brown" race and "colored" race (their equivalent to mulatto).

In the end, the reason ODR, may never disappear is because the only ones hurt by it are mixed people. Most self identify as black because of the socially acceptable ODR. Because they are treated no better than any black, they relate to blacks. But it hurts mixed people, because it is what brings confusion and trouble to the individual. It becomes hard for them to decide what they are.

Most end up just saying they are black AND biracial.

Stereotypes on top of stereotypes!?

One of the more tougher parts of being biracial, is dealing with stereotypes on top of more stereotypes. Light skinned black women and biracial women share something in common. We are often given negative black stereotypes by white people. BUT...black people also give us stereotypes.

the two ultra common stereotypes given to mixed girls are "boyfriend stealer" and "snob". Many black people have this perception that the lighter you are, the more of a threat you are. There is a light vs. dark dilemma in the black race, that perpetuate these stereotypes. Mixed people are often labeled as snobby. This stems mostly from the fact that because one is biracial, and is thus half white, mentioning this makes you come off to black people, as if you are ashamed of being black. This "snob" stereotype also comes from the light vs. dark dilemma. It is believe that, lighter is preferred most, and that lighter skinned people are often snooty because of this (the reality is, most light skinned women become snooty because they are being mistreated for being light).

These are mean stereotypes, and what is so horrible about them, is the fact that they come from people within your own race.

There are two other stereotypes, that strictly refer to mixed people, but are more annoying than anything else.

One of those stereotypes is often mentioned by white people. Whites, often not sure of what to really say about mixed people, often say they are exotic. They don't use the words "beautiful" or "ugly", they just use the words "exotic". They use it so much, it makes one ask if they have ever seen a mixed person. The things I think when I hear someone say "exotic" are forbidden fruit, and low expectations.

What I mean is, "exotic" sounds like some kind of wild animal or forbidden or unknown piece of fruit.

But by saying "exotic" it also sounds like you had low expectations for how mixed people are so supposed to look. I know that what is exotic to people, is how one can look after two races converge with each other. I know what is exotic, is how there can be so many skin tones, facial features, and hair texture within the mixed race.

Exotic, is implying that biracial people are not normal.

But the other stereotype that probably annoys me the most, is the "self hater" stereotype. The "self hater" stereotype is where, any problem you have, any emotion you feel, is attributed by self hating. This is often used by people who are against interracial relationships, or just flat out hate mixed people. Why this annoys me so much, is that people forget that mixed people do go through your normal things like everyone else.

If a biracial person had depression, it does not necessarily mean its because of being mixed. I just can't stand it when everything we go through is blamed on self hating and being biracial.

There is one stereotype, that is lesser known, that is more positive that I came across a few weeks ago. A person made mention that alot of mixed people seemed to be creative.

After thinking about it, I did notice that alot of mixed people had a creative edge to them. Knowing that creativity can mean anything from drawing, to writing, to singing, to playing music, to even sports (well somewhat).

I remember, telling them, that I can see why, the kind of life many of us mixed people have to live, and often having no one to really talk to growing up, most turn to creative outlets to express our emotions.

One person made a good point about positive stereotypes. If we try to eradicate all negative stereotypes, do we do the same for positive?

And I would say yes. Because positive stereotypes can turn into negative stereotypes pending on the individual.

What is the difference between race and culture and nationality?

Often, you hear white people say they are something such as Irish and German, and pass it off as being mixed.

The problem is, they pass it off as racially being mixed.

There is a difference between being multi-racial and multi-national and multi-cultural.

Being multi-racial (and/or biracial) means that one, is of multiple races, directly. Race is based on your skin tone.

Being multi-national though, means the country your parents are from. Also, people tend to get confused by what being multi-national means. If your family member from 1900 is Irish, that does not make you directly Irish. You are just plain old American.

But if your parents are from different countries, such as Ireland and France, then that would make you multi-national.

What makes you multi-cultural on the other hand, has to do with the cultures you adopt into your own life.

America's culture is mainly the "westernized" culture, but there are other cultures within the culture.

So if one was an Indian American they could be multi-cultural, they could celebrate their Indian culture, while also celebrating their "westernized" American culture.

In the end, though, nationality is not the same as race.

But both multi-national and multi-racial can cause someone to be multi-cultural.

The difference between Directly mixed and Indirectly mixed?

Many times when a biracial person talks of their experiences as a mixed person, blacks would chime in with lines such as "you are nothing special" and "we are all mixed so nothing special about your experience".

The notion "we are all mixed" is false. Yes, if you are black in America, there is a high chance you have a little bit of white in you.

But that is what we call "indirectly" mixed. Being indirectly mixed means, that the race mixing happened generations earlier. You are still raised by America's definition, mono-racial black people.

Directly mixed, means that you, and your very existence is the product of 2 people who are of different races mixing together. You are literally directly from it. Your biological parents are not the same race, therefore that presents you with a different experience than what those who have same race parents get.

On top of that, indirectly mixed means you dont have alot of blood, at most, indirectly mixed means you are under 50% (not at or more, ONLY under) of one race (if you are black then you have under 50% of white, it depends on how far the mixing was from your lifetime).

If you are directly mixed, you are at least 50% of one race, if not more (that is if you include indirectly being mixed, which most do not).

Saying we are all mixed is just a tactic to ignore the issues that pertain to mixed people. I have stated that mixed people and blacks can relate to each other on most things, but there are some things that biracial people go through that blacks cant understand.

I do not know if its because black people fear attention will be taken away from their plight, or if its because they need biracial people to be apart of the black race (some of the most prominent and successful blacks of the past, were actually mulatto, such as Booker T. Washington, Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Du Bois, and then you have people like Barack Obama, and then you have celebrities, and so much more).

Anyways, before you start saying "we are all mixed so it doesn't matter anyways", remember, its offensive to tell a biracial person that their experience isn't real.

Black people would know more than anyone that a colorblind society is making racism socially acceptable and that equality does not exist, therefore, dont do the same things to biracial people, that you don't want whites doing to you!!

Why say you are black when you are half white?

There are various reasons why a biracial person may say they are black every now and then.

Sometimes we say we are black, because in society we are black until one knows we are not. When you see a biracial person walking down the street, you would assume they were black and treat them like black people.

But also, biracial people often say they are black to use to their advantage every now and then. Such as jobs (quotas) and scholarships.

Obama is the perfect example. He claimed in his book that if he must be black for all things bad...why not be black for the good things too?

The mixed person has the chance to use their race(s) to their advantage at times. In a society that is as greedy as it is, one takes advantage of the opportunities that present themselves. Whether its wrong to accept a black scholarship if you are half white is not the question. The question is, if you think its wrong and tell that to the biracial person doing it, would you compensate for it, if they turned down the scholarship?

But most biracial people interchange being black and being biracial. Biracial people are placed in a similar boat as black people, and deal with racism just the same, and have been called the "n" word plenty of times. Its through that bond, that makes some biracial people self identify as black.

Is Mulatto a bad word?

This seems to be a debate. Depending on who you ask, some will say something different about the word "mulatto".

Mulatto means someone who is black and white...but sometimes people say it means "half donkey, half mule". But that is just the derivative of the word, not the actual definition.

Words like "nigger" and "mongrel" are undoubtedly offensive. But one must ask, is mulatto really offensive? 10 or 20 years ago, when one said the word "biracial" we thought black and white. Sometimes its still like that, but the term "biracial" is becoming more and more vague.

With new kinds of mixed race people besides "black and white", there is an ever growing need to have words to specifically speak of one kind of race. Saying "biracial black and white" gets too wordy and too tiresome.

There are already words being created to refer to specific mixes. Mulatto, Mestizo, Blasian (or Afro-Asian), Eurasian, then the lesser known term "blaxican".

Mulatto, has the most known history in America, but unless a new word comes into existence to refer to people who are white and black, Mulatto is all there is to use.

Whether or not the word is offensive, is left up to the individual to interpret.

The Difference Between Self Identity vs Self Hatred?

I feel its best to get this stance out there now.

I self identify both as a biracial girl and a black girl. I believe that one should take the opportunities they can get in life. There are always going to be people guilting you out of them, but only you know your situation.

Many people seem to get self identity and self hatred mixed up.

Self identity is based on identifying yourself with what you feel you can relate to. Barack Obama and Halle Berry identify as black people, sometimes interchanging it with biracial people. I said in the previous post, how you grew up often reflects how you self identify.

With self identity, one does not hate being mixed or hate either side. They are simply trying to connect.

Most mixed people are considered and treated like black people (who are mistreated in American society). It is due to this that they find themselves relating to the black race and identifying that way.

Also very rarely do they have "2 or more races" option, and "other" is not an option, other implies one does not matter.

Obama and Halle have never been afraid to say they have white moms. I have never had a problem saying my mom is white.

I am the same around everyone. I do not change my personality. I am geeky and girly and dorky. People either love me or hate me.

There are 4 ways one can self identify. They can strictly choose white, stritcly choose black, strictly choose biracial, or they can say they are all 4 or at least 2 of 4.

Self hatred on the otherhand is when a biracial person denies one of their heritage. They hate being half of what they are, or both of what they are. Often this is brought on by a painful biracial experience, most outgrow the pain, but some do not or cannot.

When a person self hates, they will not admit to being half of whatever race, they will hide it, some have bleached their skin. Some have disowned their families. Some believe procreating wtih a specific race will "wipe" the race they hate right out of them.

Often people that do not understand what being mixed is about, assume that self hatred and self identity is the same thing, the reality is, they are not.

What is a Biracial Experience?

In my introductory post, I mentioned something about a "biracial experience". Already, you are probably curious as to what that means.

Well each person in life, has an experience. In America, race is a major issue. There is still alot of racism going on, and black people often must suffer because of this.

When you are biracial, you face something that neither whites or blacks can understand.

Your experience, is how you grew up knowing one parent is black, and the other is white. Even if you did not know one of your parents, you still have an experience.

Also biracial people must grapple with that question, "Am I black or biracial or am I both?"

Self identity is an experience only biracial people can have. In fact, one's experience as being mixed growing up, often reflects how one will self identify with themselves later on.

Each biracial person goes through a different experience. But it is important that all experiences be known, so other biracial people do not feel alone.

Being Biracial

Hello, this is a blog about me, a biracial girl. Specifically I am Mulatto.

I have been inspired by many other biracial people, to talk about my own experiences.

I enjoy reading fellow mulattoes speak of their experience growing up.

I blog all over the place at different websites, I guess I just do not like having too many blogs at one website.

I am 20 years old. I am black and white. My mom is white, and my dad is black. I hope that by talking of my own personal experiences, I will maybe help someone else who has had similar experiences growing up or is just naturally curious about what mixed people go through.