I'm Biracial Not Black Damn it!
By Jessica Ann Mitchell
Mixed, Biracial, Black, White…Race and the issue of racial self-identification have been a controversial subject for years. Often times, the voices of those who are caught in between the discourse, for lack of better words, goes unheard or avoided. This documentary provides an interesting discourse on perspectives of race. Who is Black? Who is White? What does it mean to be considered either despite “mixed” racial backgrounds? Some feel that just because they are biracial, does not mean they should be automatically lumped into the category of Black. On the other hand, there are those who wish to be acknowledged as Black/ African American like Barack Obama. This is a very touchy issue because opinions are usually based on societal and personal identification preferences.
Still, I’m a bit disturbed by the title. “Biracial Not Black Damn It”, is sure to be a declaration of much needed self-assertion and identification. I often wonder why the title couldn’t have been “Biracial Not Black or White Dammit”. The fourth part of the series is called, “I’m Biracial Not White Dammit”. However, the initial discourse of fiercely distancing from Blackness in the title can be problematic. It could unknowingly play into the all too often societal rejection of blackness based historical negativity associated with Blackness or having a black identity.
Still, the documentary provokes deep thought about racial identity. What makes a person Black? Is it having a blood line traced with African descent or is it a mixture of bloodline and cultural connections? What do you think about this issue?
15 Responses to I'm Biracial Not Black Damn it!
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I’m trying to be as understanding as possible but it just sounds like they want to push away from being black. They at like its the end of the world if somebody calls them black. smh. I wonder how they would feel if they had to grow up being dark skinned in America, thats wear the real oppression comes in.
Yep. I think the “not black” part makes it pretty clear. Why isn’t this just called “I’m biracial, dammit!”? This really puts the whole thing into perspective for me. People with white parentage have now fully embraced their white “half” to the point of becoming racists. Wow. SMH.
Speaking as a biracial person, it’s not that “we” are pushing away from the African-American heritage. I embrace BOTH my German and African-American heritage and thank God that He made me this way! I believe the issue is that because our appearance is mostly that of the dominate culture, i.e. African-American or Black, we’re automatically put into this category when in fact we’re of a multi-hertiage. To better understand, the Black culture wants to incorporate their African heritage so the African-American identity has been adopted as a way to describe who they are and where they came from. It’s the same as a person with multi-cultures in their blood…we want to be recognized for who we really are. But in the end, aren’t we ALL from mixed heritages? While my parents may not “look” the same I think if everyone dug a little deep into their background you begin to find your “true” identity.
Thanks for allowing me to speak on this subject. It is near and dear to my heart. I love EVERY cuture regardless of the differences, inside or out.
this biracial/half-breed/mixed/mutt/mulatto STory is getting old, and tired now !!! i only know one group of people who will go out of their way to question folks identity or race, White people. if it’s so Bad or biracial people feel being picked on or beat up, then stay /live with nonblack people. blacks have always accepted and let mixed-race folks into the community. these people on this page and others need to check into some of Dr. Laura Sclessinger good counseling sessions ??? most or all of the folks i see in this documentary have more black features than white ! We ( folks who look like Oprah, whoopi, angela bassett and gabrielle union ) will not Lose sleep/weight or miss you guys when you go to the other side ! again, i’m so freaking tired of this Broke story. please get some Counseling and some Prozac. you either with us or not but its obvious how nonblack folks feel with dr . laura’s rants. i saw a white women just about follow a woman out the store to see who her baby dad was (race ) ??
Unfortunately, another distraction from real facts.
-Poverty is most felt by people of color.
-Women of color (regardless of what ethnicity) are the poorest of humans on the face of the earth.
-Being half of anything does not make you whole (as is apparent by this monologue).
It is sad that this is a storyline at all. The US has been at war for nine years. Women and children and men are dying all over the world from starvation, poverty, ignorance and greed of others. The squandering of human life is a critical issue in the world. Whoever is writing these stories needs a reality check.
Cece said: “blacks have always accepted and let mixed-race folks into the community.” Sorry, Cece, that’s simply not true. As a biracial girl growing up, I received death threats from black girls, warning me not to come to school, and even the boys taunted me. And that followed me all throughout college, and, luckily stopped when I became an adult. If that’s acceptance, I’d hate to see rejection.
What you experienced was bullies taking advantage of your weakness… You were accepted and allowed to go to that school… You probably had more perks than you care to admit right now… The lighter skinned Brothers and Sisters growing up and grown up are symbol of beauty in most of our eyes… You probably took advantage of privilege that comes along with light complexion…
What Ex-Vegan experienced was more than bullying because she/he(?) may have been weaker and thus a easy target. Her mixed heritage was the probably the focus and as a teenager in the 70s, I witnessed girls of mixed racial backgrounds being bullied by black girls especially if they had tan complexions and long hair! It was racism no two ways about it.
I checked out the clip, read the comments and have lots of trouble with the “title” as it plays into folks trying hard to run away from being Black. As if their were something wrong with it. I have to give it to President Obama. He’ got it right. He’s a Black Man. While not denying his mother or grandparents. It seems the people in the clip want to make sure folks “do not” consider them Black. This is a long and ugly part of many societies around the world. Whitening yourself. You’ll find it especially in the Spanish speaking Caribbean and many other countries. They want to marry someone light skinned, so they can try to wipe out any semblance of Black heritage that they have. Many Chinese avoid the sun, because darker skin denotes you may be a field worker. Again as if there is something wrong with that. The U.S. A. also saw this ugly episode with lighter skinned Blacks trying to pass many years ago. While I know for a fact that there is mixed race in my background, I am proud and happy to be African-American and Black. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Those who struggle with their Blackness is just plain sad. They should be proud to be considered Black. It is the way it is. Your not going to be considered white unless you look white. White people began this rule of thumb. I don’t see them protesting that your white instead of Black, just because your mother or father is white. No, they look on you as Black as well. Embrace your Blackness.
Yes,,, Yes,,,Yes… They best love it,,, because they can’t leave it…
Recognize, bi-racial people… If part of your lineage is of the Darker race,,, you are Black…
I will now expound upon it only speaking primarily on the title itself.
Topic should be covered however drop the cliche title and expound on the legacy off bi-racial experience. Fredrick Douglas to Mr. Mrs Love. Title comes off rejecting half of its community,yet wants to benefit from Slavery, Colonism, Jim Crow, Civil Rights.
Put some more critical thinking into title and topic.
The title JUST STINGS, with I don’t want to be associated with you. Rejecting a great legacy that worked hard to enable these fruits. Saying we (bi-racial community) don’t want to associate ourselves with those colored, negro, Afro-American, African American and etc. However we do want to reap the benefits.
After watching the video clip certain issues are could be covered better, i.e. dealing with the “mean girls” and bullies” in school. I think we all have dealt with this in school and the children find the most sensitive thing about us and tease us about it. My background is a growing up in diverse community since my father was in the U.S. Military. I as a youth was bullied and dealt with a “mean girls” amongst my community: “David you have fat lips and a big nose”. I got over it. Maybe some (noT all) these people should get over it too.
Out of the mouth of babes… A young girl in the video says she was embarrassed, when here Black mother came and picked her up from her friend’s house, since every one their was Caucasian execpt her mother. THE QUESTION IS WHY & HOW COME did you feel that way.
Finally what are the qualifications on being bi-racial. My lineage is of African, Spanish, Jewish and (working on dealing with the European LoL {somethings just you have to accept} BITTER – SWEET) Do I call my bi-racial too? Should I be offended that bi-racial ethnic background community does not include me. Should I become offended when I speak with a Jewish person tell them my family celebrates Yom Kippur and other Jewish holidays? Or when a Latin person only speaks English to me after speaking to previous person in Spanish?
Its the 21st Century and we are still not living in a post-racial world. However by 2050 my questions and this topic will be considered cliche.
Bad title… Rename it
“It is Cochrane’s own internal conflicts that has resulted in a project that was flawed from conception, weak in development, amateurish in execution and not surprisingly, terrible in the final product.”
You can read more in my review at: http://www.stevenriley.com/BiracialNotBlackReview.pdf
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RELATED COMMENTARY ON THIS FILM:
http://mixedchickschat.typepad.com/mixed_chicks_chat/2010/10/film-re.html
http://www.stevenriley.com/BiracialNotBlackReview.pdf
http://www.stevenriley.com/photography
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