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Is transracial a thing?
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No, it's not a thing. Relating to a group is fine. But, trying to say you're part of the group when it's clear you're not is not.
that was my conclusion, but then I worried I was being naive or dismissive. I think it seems like more of an extreme interest in the culture.
Like, I'm not here to say that I understand what these people think, or what's definitively right or wrong, in this case.But why can't these "transracial" people just do whatever they want and not be judged?
Like there are physical and sexual differences between men and women, and transgender is graciously accepted by this group. We discern between sexuality and gender, allow people to have "they/they're" or "zhe/zer" pronouns.
Race isn't even a reliable indicator of anything. White is an amalgamation of a bunch of groups and has historically changed.
Black, is different from African. All the African ethnicities are different from each other.
Asian is still a hugely diverse group of ethnicities and cultures.
If someone wants to call themselves something else, who gives a crap really? and who are you to judge?
Coates has this great line from "Between the World and Me" where he says "Race is the child of racism, not the father." Meaning we derive race and categorize people because we want to discriminate.
Well, given that empirically we are all Africans...Love that name Ja Du - would mean in German Yes You. :D
But joking aside, does it matter that he wasn't born on the Filippines?
It hurts no one if he considers himself a Filipino, does it?
Ashley wrote: "I had recently come across this article: http://www.whas11.com/news/transracia...A person in Tampa, FL identifies as Filipino. Another person I ha..."
I had heard some talk of this but was unsure of the details. If the race in question has no issue why not as long as no one is hurt by it. Better than segregation and racism
Ross wrote: "Ashley wrote: "I had recently come across this article: http://www.whas11.com/news/transracia...A person in Tampa, FL identifies as Filipino. Anot..."
The only people pulling this transracial nonsense have been white. If any person of color claimed to be white, and not their actual race, they would, not only be laughed off the block, but deemed mentally ill.
It's the privilege of wanting to claim someone's culture without the pain behind it. Speaking to one or two people do not make the entire race. They can be fine, but, I know more individuals not fond of this person's intentions.
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It's the privilege of wanting to claim someone's culture without the pain behind it.
Exactly. It's one of those things that only us white people can get away with.
I am passionate about Japanese culture, literature and language. I therefore do my best to learn more about them and would love to get the chance to live there for a while. I do not identify as Japanese, nor has the thought ever crossed my mind. Doesn't take any of my appreciation of the culture away.
Please don't laugh, but I'm going to relate this to the show Switched at Birth because i don't personally know of anyone in this situation, but one of the main characters in Switched at Birth, Daphne, is white, but she raised by a Latino mother in a Latino neighborhood. She identifies throughout the entirety of the show as Latino and does face controversy when biological Latino people call her out on it, saying she can't claim to be Latino when she looks white and doesn't face the same discrimination they face because of her skin tone. In this instance (and any real instance similar to it) I do believe that transracial should be a thing, because she was raised with that culture.In the sense that someone is just claiming a race because the talked to a few people and think that they know the culture because of that, no (as many of you have argued against transracial with), that would not be transracial.
There is also the case of children being adopted into a racially different home. Should those children not be allowed to claim the race of their adoptive parents - who's cultures they have grown up with - because they are not biologically that race?
I guess this goes back to what Winston said about race not being reliable, and I completely agree with that statement. Race shouldn't really be a factor. The more reliable identifier is the cultural aspect.
Ashley wrote: "She identifies throughout the entirety of the show as Latino and does face controversy when biological Latino people call her out on it, saying she can't claim to be Latino when she looks white and doesn't face the same discrimination they face because of her skin tone...."That's seems to me to sum up the whole problematic of the Race/Culture discussion in a nutshell, if all we do is use it to raise fences between us, then what's the worth of it?
The problem with individuals like Rachel Dolezal was that she was a white woman who lied and abused a system that was garnered to help minorities. As Ana eluded to its one thing to appreciate a culture and what it has to offer society in general but its something entirely different to exploit it for personal gain. https://mic.com/articles/120574/here-...
"Dolezal practiced cultural theft. There's a stark difference between racial indeterminacy, or the idea that race is not fixed and individuals may have multiple racial identities, and racial misrepresentation. Racial misrepresentation is cultural theft.
Cultural appropriation is a contested activity in the U.S., especially in the realms of artistry, but cultural theft committed with the purpose of gaining access to positions or institutional power is more insidious. This is what Dolezal did. According to the Washington Post, for example, when Dolezal "applied to Howard University to study art with a portfolio of 'exclusively African-American portraiture,' the university 'took her for a black woman' and gave her a full scholarship."
"You've got a white woman coming in that got a full-ride scholarship to the black Harvard," Dolezal's father, Larry Dolezal, told the Washington Post."
Latanya (CraftyScribbles) wrote: "Ross wrote: "Ashley wrote: "I had recently come across this article: http://www.whas11.com/news/transracia...A person in Tampa, FL identifies as F..."
I think you've pinpointed what was bothering me about this subject, when I couldn't put my finger on it.
James wrote: "The problem with individuals like Rachel Dolezal was that she was a white woman who lied and abused a system that was garnered to help minorities. As Ana eluded to its one thing to appreciate a cul..."Ah, I see.
Well I guess people will do all sorts of things to try and take advantage of a system, and come up with all sorts of stupid reasons why they should be allowed to.
its interesting everyone assumes the person doing the race change is caucasian that is not necessarily the case maybe more fluidly around race and culture is a good thing. Bring people together, less barriers. just a thought.
I always called it mixed-race. You should be given a right whatever you want to call something. I always follow logic not instinct. I love the culture of mixed-race relationship. It is like mixing to colours or merging to different things. We are all like rainbows.
Transracial means: across or crossing racial boundaries
I think no matter what our cultural experience is growing up we can’t escape our bodies. Many people around us will never see or treat us as anything other than the color of our skin. So for this practical reason I think transracial does not exist. What could happen is a deconstruction of whiteness and blackness in our lived experience, and this could set us free from some of the constraints society imposes on each of us. Conversations about claims of being transracial could be an opening to have this broader conversation.
A person in Tampa, FL identifies as Filipino. Another person I have seen in the news that has identified as transracial was Rachel Dolezal. Here is an article that I found on her: https://www.theguardian.com/commentis....
I was wondering what other people think of this? Do you think it's destructive, like the second article states? I have been mulling it over since reading the articles, but I'm curious to see what others think about it.