What are YouTube?: multiracial and mixed heritage folks

[dangar45]

50% Russian 50% West African. I only like the Russian part though

[exotiq88]

I'm a multiracial (black/white/asian) Hispanic (or Latina) immigrant from Latin America. I classify myself as Hispanic in the USA. Racially, I'm mixed....I don't choose one side of my racial makeup because I don't believe in the 'one drop rule' and I shouldn't have to anyway. I appear racially ambiguous and I embrace all of me and loving it! :)

[ChelseaNicole10]

My mom is Black White and Blackfoot Indian, and my father is Mexican and Cherokee. What does that make me.....it makes me, me. I'm proud to be multiracial and see from multiple perspective.

[devolutionone]

I'm Korean from my mom and African American/ Irish from my dad. Adopted by French Canadian (white) family... I think 360..

[tripez206]

When people ask me what is my daughter I say she's Mexican , white and native american and leave it as that , but before all that they always ask me if she is my daughter or assume I'm the nanny :-/ .

[papichulo364]

I'm a mixed Haitian Latino of French, Spanish, Taino Indian, Asian, East Indian, and European heritage. Also consisting of Dominican, Creole, Caribbean, and Native American.

[thegreatestoutthere]

when will AAs finally learn to distinguish race and social designations? seriously, its about time

india arie is black and african american

beyonce is multiracial and african american

walter francis white was WHITE but simply restricted by laws of the time

[MultiSmartass1]

@thegreatestoutthere As someone who is Black/caucasian, the answer-based on my reading, research and viewing of videos and documentaries on the subject-is no.

AAs have a vested interest in racial solidarity-even though there is little of it in evidence.

Their adoption knowingly or unknowingly of the One Drop Rule has hurt many biracials.

I think it is a waste of time to lobby AA to change their attitudes and accept people of biracial and mutiracial status as themselves.

[kculturegirl]

i'm black, portguese, and indo-carribean, proud of my mix

[aylix89]

homosapien ?

[florasita]

this is really neat ! 

[skylinehearts]

I'm Black, White, Irish and Native American. I'm proud to be a mixed person :D

[aylix89]

human - end of convo

[thebadroo]

sup

[geesquared1]

1/2 indonesian (with a bit of dutch, like 1/8) and 1/2 american white, whatever that would be. most likely english, because all of my family is from georgia (US)

[TheAngelInTheAir]

I'm half German and half Mexican. =]

[WhereYaBoss]

I have a mixed heritage and I don't think it's a big deal. I grew up around mostly mixed heritage people. I live in the US- Northeast where the populations is multiracial. I live in a world with Hyphenated people and I'm so over it. I think of myself as black because most blacks in my country are mixed heritage, even if they don't want to accept it. Peace. One love.

[sugarlessriel]

i am 1/4 chinese, 1/2 latina (black, native and caucasian mix), and 1/4 caucasian- 100% caribbean. i grew up in a family where no one looks alike. no one but my mother's paternal family is of a 'pure' origin because we've been mixing for generations. mixed and proud :)

[truthhitmanisback]

I'M Half white and Half black genetically, but my complextion is brown. In white society that makes me black. Thats how they saw Bob Marley who was also mixrace. And , as I've noticed, they hate the mixrace person who has a Jamaican background. Why ? Because Jamaicans put up more resistance to white peoples oppression towards darker people of the Earth. What did they call Obama ? The first BLACK president , when he is really the first MIXRACED President.

[aylix89]

@truthhitmanisback i am black i find it really annoying

it is because of this stupid one drop rule

there will never be a black president - but i think black people are prepared to comprimise

[ArtistSpETv]

see my video & tell me what you think about girls only dating mixed race boys?

[Slave4Anime]

I'm 1/2 Black, 1/4 Native American (Ojibwe on dad's side and Blackfoot on Mom's side), and 1/4 Caucasian (French on my dad's side and Irish on my Mom's side). I am only connected to my Mom's side of the family.

[mrsdicaprio22]

I am black and puerto-rican.....proud of both heritages. I am a biracial person. THE END.

[kaylavictoria321]

i am african american, portuguese and native american. but i just say im black cause thats what i mostly look like

[shanawe]

I am half German and half Ethiopian and proud :)

[KMO325]

Well...African, Irish, Chinese and I was born in Southeast, D.C. Most people would think of me though as being African-American though.

[OCtennischick92]

Japnese, German, Russian, Chinese, Carribean (Trinidad & Tobago), but most people think I'm Mexican since I'm dark because of tennis season right now :(

[CantwrCymreig]

I also can remember stepping on slugs in my bare feet on my way to the outhouse. And sharing bathwater with my brother. I also remember eating salmon with rice.

I am a...WASHINGTONIAN! (Currently living in Ferndale, about 15 miles from the Nooksack Tillicum.) :-)

[sheppeyescapee]

I'm English 1/4, Mauritian Creole 1/4 and 1/2 Polish Jew, but most people just see me as white.

[1DashMan]

2 halves make a whole. We all have/had a mother and a father, yet how many of us consider ourselves half man half Woman? Not many I'm sure. But maybe if more people observed that fact, there would be less ignorance directed toward people of mixed heritage.

[BlackSabbathGuy]

To the people who say we are human ,,,i cant agree with them more,,,,but it sure does feel sweet to know where your roots of your family come from,, it gives me a sense of pride to know where my family descends from. Hopefully one day people will accept each other for the type of person they are and not by the color of ones skin or the activities one partakes in....i love farming and i get called a hic alot is it right ,,,,no ,,,,but i am correct when that is prejudice and wrong

[DaTruth2024]

I couldn't agree more. Hopefully one day the human race or "mankind" will accept and love each other without looking at the physical differences, but the physical/emotional/mental/spir­itual/

metaphysical similarities we all commonly share with one another.

[UtterObliteration]

I am 'English', 'Scottish', 'Irish' and Jewish (in decreasing order).

[DaTruth2024]

I am a Caribbean-American born to Jamaican parents of Sub-Saharan African, South Asian, European (French, Irish), and Chinese descent. :)

[xIchikunx]

im italian-nativeamerican-black-c­hinese-purtorican-samoan lol

[mjurney]

I'm half Korean, half white (Scotch-Irish, English and German).

[caligyrlyup]

.....a human being.

[Bucnoil]

well said!

[cedaRrose]

Lets see.........are you ready?

Suquamish, Nooksack, Stolo-Skway , Songhees, Chippewa Cree, Purtugese, and French...um sure theres a few more Coast Salish Tribes hehe :O

[madihwa]

Interesting. Well, I am English, German, Scots, native American, Jewish & probably a little welsh. The mixing came from my mom's side & none of them look anything alike. My sibs & I look nothing alike. My husband is northern Chinese. Our kids look nothing alike. Our son-law is Dutch & their kids look nothing alike. One looks a lot like her grandpa & she has dark hair but her skin is very white. The other has blond hair & light golden asian skin. One is small. One is taller. Both are gorgeous.

[TVParkdale]

Wissikoddiwinnme.

For those who don't know what that is--it's the Trois Rivieres version of "Metis".

Thus--First Nations since the Algonquin are matrilinial.

[honey2938]

I am many things. I'm Portugese, Italian, African American, Cuban, Columbian, and Greek. I'm also serious yes these races are all apart of my ancestery and I am all of these races. I can speek Spanish, Italian, and Greek. :) (:

[bossladig]

I'm mixed with African - American, Cherokee Indian and European-Jew and I am proud of it. I'm Happy to be a Mixican

[TheMrMixedbloods]

My Dad is half American and Half Spanish and also My Mom is Half Filipino and Half Japanese. Im proud to be MULTIRACIAL!!!

[Gabriyela4u]

My heritage is Asian Indian, Malysian, Sri lankan, Monacan, and born Canadian. I have always had a hard time being accepted into by own heritage group since my ethnicities are not used to being mixed up. I get this blank look when I tell people what I am, so I just let them speculate for themselves. But at the end of the day I am part of one race, the human race.

[chemuhk]

wow i thought alot of you were gonna be like me and have maybe 2 or 3 different heritages lol. me im nez perce and colville which is native american. and some percentage mexican. not quite sure how much.

[goldynhuni]

im tired of people calling themselves mixed when they have a speck of blood from another race way back in history.i may not look it but im black and im proud.

[lillyitaly]

True, u can't call ur self mixed if ur gran gran gran gran father or mother was a difference race, thats not mixed, otherwise everybody in the eart are mixed race!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm mixed cause my mom she is somalian and my dad is italian thats it, no cause my ancestry were german or english!!! My baby will be mixed cause i'm mix and my bf he is irish,if my baby will have a son with chinese o italian or greeketc..etc, his son will be half irish and half the other race.

[TheMidnightBell07]

@lillyitaly Hey, here's the thing that puzzles me though. You can have have a white ma and black dad and your biracial even if the dad is part something else. Why is it that the man that found out through a DNA test that he's 50% white 50% black not biracial? I don't see the difference please explain.

[DaTruth2024]

@TheMidnightBell07 Then that person's dad would be considered "Multi-generationally Mixed" but not "Biracial". Their son/daughter could still claim to be "biracial" as they were raised with that experience just as he would have been raised to be "black" and has the right to hold on to that identity. This actually has happened quite a bit.

[TheMidnightBell07]

@DaTruth2024 Hey, what is that person? You said that person's dad but I me3an the person

[DaTruth2024]

@TheMidnightBell07

Technically a "quadroon". They are considered to be multiracial as well.

50% white/50% black - Mulatto

75% white/25% black - Quadroon

87.5% white/12.5% black - Octroon

75%black/25% white - Griffe

I must tell you though that these terms are out-dated and that scientifically race doesn't exist to begin with. :)

[TheMidnightBell07]

@DaTruth2024 Hey, I know they are outdated but the world still uses race. It saves people from going Hey you! When we eleminate race then we have to go by other discriptions. You'll hear instead of Black; that man heavily tanned by the sun robbed the seven eleven or that quite pale woman shoplifted from the K-mart. Doesn't even have to be bad it could be great like the heavily tanned man and pale woman won awards for their humanitarian work. We need something to call them before we learn names

[DaTruth2024]

@TheMidnightBell07

Yeah I agree to some extent also. I just wish that everybody or atleast Americans would not make everything about "race". And yes it's great to recognize the phenotypical differences between us.

I felt I had to tell you that these terms are out-dated in case you used them infront of an indivisual whom may be offended my them. For an example most biracials (and even multi-generational mixies) don't use the word "mulatto" or at times are extremely offended by it.

[thegreatestoutthere]

@DaTruth2024 quadroons look just like exotic white people

[sfx34]

What am I? I am a mix of two distinct cultures. I was born to an Ecuadorian father and an Irish-Italian mother. I never understood why many people make race such a complicated thing. We are all human. In this day and age in America, the only country in the world with people from every corner of the world, what's wrong with marrying someone outside of your race? I think in the future the pressure to fit with one race will be gone, as USA becomes more diverse each day.

[myfriendesther]

...looking forward to some more responses!

[Keesmeenek]

I'm Bermudian of West African, Scottish, French, Scandanavian, Chinese, Asian Indianand Central Asian Descent....Oh...I forgot Irish.

[Risain6]

Very goood idea on this project! We humans are all one race. Nowdays, I think a lot of people just could'nt remember this very very special race " HUMAN RACE". Im chinese, scottish, indian, malay, polyenesian, indonesian, thai, singaporean, afghanistan but it do not really matter to me, because i know what race I will stick too " HUMAN RACE ".

[WhitEthnicPride]

Brazil is almost entirely mulatto. But because of sexual selection these people come out looking black, white, and mixed without changing their underlying genetics. The majority of Brazilians are mixed appearing only a few are black.

[morbie5]

Brazil is not even close to entirely mulatto (even if you count someone with like 1/16 black ancestry). Southern Brazil is mostly white due to massive immigration from European countries. As you go north it gets more mulatto.

About 50 percent of the country is white and the other half is mulatto and black.

[UtterObliteration]

Most of the indigenous population was slaughtered and starved. Check out 'American Holocaust' by David Stannard.

[myfriendesther]

hopefully this video archive will spark some discussion about the differences between race and cultural identity. lots of people still think race is a biological thing rather than a political thing.

[muckleshootpr]

i know what you mean...your "race" is Native or Black or whatever if you check the boxes on the census. thats it. having a cultural or group identity that is "native" or "black" is something totally different.

[shaytrev]

Go to Rio,Brazil and you are likely to become a victim of street crime as in any multicult City in America or Europe whose Cities have been ablaze with Multicult rioters of late.Whereas you will be completely safe in Tokyo or Bejing where the Cities are 100% Indigenous.You are also safe in all white neighbourhoods in America and Europe.Say no to the multicult and yes to the truth.

[taoaman1]

You must carry a tremendous burden of hatred towards yur european ancestors globetrotting around the place making us all "one world"!

[CollidgeStoodint]

... I'm sorry, thinking about race makes me racist against white people? Even though I identify in order to acknowledge my white father's influence on my life? really?

[hamoana4]

HaHaHa.....guess it was only a matter of time before Captain America arrived!!!

[hamoana4]

well, historically for the most part, interaction between races was seldom a problem until it bumped up against the white race. Why do U think multi-ethnic people have the issues that they do today?. Why do I think Barak Obama will never win the presidency? Do U think racial integration happens in a vacuum where we all live in peace love & happiness?

People like U are everywhere. They'd pay lip service to a harmonious american society yet harbor prejudice & discriminate without a 2nd thought!

[clammer]

Perhaps I'm unique, but being 1/2 chinese and 1/2 caucasian mutt (scottish, norweigan, swedish), I don't really think of myself as being of a specific race. Only people around me think of me as being either chinese, hispanic, filipino, or vietnamese - it can be hard to tell, though my chinese last name gives it away. Identifying with a specific race was never really important to me, it was only important to others. I guess I just think of myself as a California kid.

[anghiariIT]

I always find idiots like you funny. White men weren't so picky when they would sneak down to slave quarters and rape enslaved women time after time after time. If you have so much kinship...looks like your ancestors would have kept their pants zipped and slept in their own bed with their own kind. Now is it you guys in the klan who just marry your sisters or your cousins?....no wonder the klan is getting bigger, Your uncle is your brother and your sister is your wife...whose the mongrel?

[usnutter]

Ive seen sometimes on TV how a newsperson, talkshow host mentions their pride in their Irish, scottish or whatever european heritage. Yet I get the feeling one couldnt "brag" so matter-of-factly if one was talking about a heritage that descended from a darkskinned minority. Thats America!

[anghiariIT]

Individuals of mixed-race ought to be hugely proud...you are what the future of this world is going to look like!

[Cali4Obama]

Cool video , Louie!

[alim1011]

Im really glade to see people considering them selfs as a part of the human race insted of one ethnic race. it brings us a step closer to what a great man deticated his life try'n to teach.....1 love. Bob Marley would be proud. thanks Louie Gong.. folks like you are a breath of fresh air...1

[conatigirl]

What am I? Passing for Black most of my life, at least it felt that way. Yeah, we live in a racist society. Y'know what? The world changes. Non-whites weren't even considered human, once. Women weren't thought to have the intelligence of a man. And a size 14 woman was considered healthy, not fat. The world changes. We're on the way to declaring our race as American, regardless of the color, the ancestry. Puerto Ricans can do it, Cubans can do it, why can't we?

[dixieflorida]

look up HK Edgerton

[pct1224]

He's Cute!!

[TheBunny77777]

If filling out a form that asks for your race, it's really quite easy. Simply put "NONE" since that is the correct answer.

[LibraPixie007]

I just read the article about you on the Gut section on msnbc. It was a great article. I am only black, but I had Native American relatives on my mom's side. Plus, my cousins are mixed, Filipino and black. I honestly don't think evryone is made of one single race. We're all mixed inside. But I agree with frankieosf. I'm American, and more so, a citizen of the world. Much love for you and your cause Louie!! Btw, you're beautiful on the inside and out! :)

[marcusmagice]

something new. You are not. We blacks have just learned to call ourselves black. Ultimately you'll find this is the path of least resistance and besides you won't be reconginzed until you achieve some amazing feet. That's why the Asians are now fighting us over Tiger Woods. And that's why Korea finally accepted the designation of mixed race children....grr because of Hines Ward's Super Bowl MVP performance.

[louiegong]

marcus- I take your point on the chin. It definately has been difficult to be Native and Chinese and White...and I don't expect that to change anytime soon. However, I'm not looking for the path of least resistance. And I am, like everyone else, capable of great feats. Way before my involvement with MAVIN, the multiracial movement (I-Pride, AMEA and others)changed the census, which was a spectacular feat that lead to this discussion we're having now.

[marcusmagice]

I commend you for your courage but tell me what can you do that millions of people over the course of 200 years have not already done? Ultimately there is nothing to gain. Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Dominicans,have African ancestary. Many "Blacks" had white and Native American fore fathers. However in the black community we found that banding together in one group under the label "Black or African American" gave us a better chance politically, economically, and socially. Eventually people choose.

[louiegong]

I think you're right. It's important to work within the American-style construct of race, and mainting/maximizing political voice is important crucial. This is why I'm multiracial (small m). In my opinion, people of mixed heritage add depth to existing categories of race. We're not a new or separate racial category that dilutes the political voice of existing racial groups. Of course, other people of mixed heritage think differently:)

[louiegong]

(I'm cheating by replying to myself! Good discussion- thanks;) One thing that's important to realize is that "Black" folks(big B) didn't "band" together, nor did "American Indians." We were labeled, quantified, and "banded" together by the dominant group. The multiracial issue, along other discussions of within group differences, represent our efforts to raise awareness of the cultural and ethinic diversity within "Black" and "American Indian" political categories.

[marcusmagice]

I disagree Louie. Look at Mardi Gras a celebration of African and Native American heritage...Brazil has carnival which is identical to what the United States has in New Orleans. Go to Brazil you'll see a tapestry. The culture of Native Armenians and people of African descent is incredibly interwoven. In fact shed the name nooksack because they don't respond to the same racial definitions as we do. Native Americans for a long time were very tribal and that hurt them . Black Americans were not.

[marcusmagice]

But louie I commend your overall efforts on seeking to do better. But this is a cultural element in America it has to do with "white power"....the division of races. I recently visited Brazil it is predominantly black and you wouldn't believe the ethnic mixing. The same in the Caribbean but the dominant culture is different in both cases. The culture is Afro-centric therefore not routed in racism....maybe this can help you better implement the type of racial changes you desire.

[hnlmkk]

Brazil isn't predominantly black. Sounds like you took a trip to Salvador and haven't seen other places like R. Grande do Sul, Minais Gerais, S. Paulo, Amazonas, Pernambuco, Santa Catarina. Maybe my experience too doesn't reflect the entire country since the states I mentioned r where my friends r from, none of them r black actually w/ the exception of the one from M. Gerais who does have black ancestry, but again, it doesn't mean that state is full of Blacks or mixed. It is just diverse.

[marcusmagice]

Yes maybe your experience doesn't reflect the entire country. With that being said why even comment if you don't know all the facts? Just another example of YouTubers just spouting off. Do some research ok and then contact me.

[hnlmkk]

In other words, YOUR experience doesn't mean that is how the country is exclusively. My point, the very last sentence was "it is just diverse". I think we have to look at "spouting off" from a different perspective. Wouldn't you say that you were doing the same thing? What you stated wasn't untrue but neither was my point. I have seen & DISCUSSED personally with other Brazilians from various states of Brazil. I forgot Curitiba too, both of the girls I met there are very caucasian looking.

[taoaman1]

Discussion about "other" races besides Black & White IMO adds different nuance to the race discussion. It allows other ethnic races to stand up for themselves (diversify?) in some small way as to take some of the "heat" borne so proudly stoicly & so long by blacks in America who as far as I am concerned carried the struggle for minority rights in modern America. Sure, almost any non-white was discriminated against in America but this discussion is something a little less confrontational.

[anghiariIT]

MM-That is not historical fact... banding together wasn't a voluntary act. It was forced much like apartheid in South Africa. Also it was absolutely necessary for survival particularly after the Emancipation proclamation. And blacks were literally forced to be together as the majority white culture segregated them. Many states hated releasing their slaves and told blacks to leave the states within 24-48 hours or be enslaved again.

[marcusmagice]

19th century. That's when blacks were able to better organize and utilize their diversity such as lighter and darker skin. A historical fact the lighter skinned blacks often passed as white they infiltrated the Klan on many occasions and allow federal authorities to arrest suspected member of lynchings. Just look at Wentworth Miller star of Prison Break. I bet you didn't know that he had a black father. Men like him were used all over the South to infiltrate the Klan and bring it to its knees.

[marcusmagice]

I think you're fighting a loosing battle. You are what people define you as. This is a racist society get over it. Black here are the most ethnically diverse group in the world next to Brazilian Blacks but there is the one drop rule if you are one drop black than you are black this applies to : Barack Obama, Halle Berry, Tiger Woods, Rashida Jones, Vin Diesel, " The Rock" Johnson, Derek Jeter,Shemar Moore, Boris Kodjoe......everybody. What's funny is that you think that you are talking about.

[anghiariIT]

MM,

The one drop rule was initiated to keep the bi-racial offspring of white land owners who were raping/sleeping with black enslaved women from any right to inherit the land of their white fathers. There was already a law that blacks would not own land. So no matter how white you may have looked coming out of the womb, if your mother or father was black, you were black and could not claim any right to your father's land. Why people still pay attention to that one-drop now...is beyond me?

[Keesmeenek]

I know it baffles me aswell...o_O

[claudiapfeffer]

Love the video. What am I? Human being.What race? Human... Ancestry..Mexican.Indian.Engli­sh. Raised in Tulsa Oklahoma,live in New Orleans. My opinion about mixed?? This is America and most people came from other countries and they add a combination of cultures for us to share. I think that is great.Yes jagskay celebrate who we are as an individual.

[june241969]

I am an adoptee. My blood heritage is denied me, as the State of Rhode Island will not open my birth records. I am forced to take an expensive DNA test to find out what my heritage is and it won't tell me where it comes from (mother, father), just percentages.

I am an adoptee - my known heritage is what the government of my state decided it would be.

[anghiariIT]

Your adoptive parents know your racial background. It is given to them when you were adopted. However, you should check and see if your state has any laws that can require your birth race information be given to you. Certain groups of people are at higher risk of certain diseases because of their race. Particularly certain couples who may consider getting married.

[TheBunny77777]

anghiariIT is absolutely correct. If fact, the more races you have in your blood, the more likely you are to get ANY disease.

[anghiariIT]

Bunny,

That is not true. There are a limited number of disorders that are genetic that are passed along only between people with the same racial background. The disorder doesn't affect them but affects their children. So if you don't really know your birth parents racial/ medical history, you could have no idea that you may be at risk.

[june241969]

My adoptive parents were given NO information about my racial or ethnic background, mine was a private adoption. I am not alone, most adoptees have no information nor do they have access to any. The laws protect the "privacy" of the mother, and the adoption industry has highly paid lobbyists to keep it that way.

[anghiariIT]

Depends on your age. But even in private adoptions most parents required certain information. They wanted to know the race of the child, whether the parents were educated and I can't believe your birth parents didn't demand that. Why? Because they could end of with a child with a racial background they were not comfortable with, as well as someone who could have any number of mental or physical disabilities.

[june241969]

Apparently you are unaware that people have had not only their race but their birthdates changed so they could not trace their birthparents and yes, race was hidden along with any family defects. My birth parents were rejected from every adoption agency available to them. That's why they jumped at the private adoption. There are millions of adoptees in this country unable to access what is their birthright because of closed records, falsified records, cases of abandoment.

[anghiariIT]

I am aware of the breaches of the law, but those changes were not legal. You must understand that it is important that adoptive parents make sure all of this information is obtained. Why were they rejected by adoption agencies? Private adoptions can be a euphemism for anything. Some are legal and many were not for many reasons. Parents who are willing to forego legal adoptions give up certain safeguards that adoptive childen end up paying for later in life when they have no info available!

[MrsBrando]

Louie, great video and great idea!! I know people aim at race, ethnicity, nationality, religion when they ask that question. Finding an answer is not easy, what we are is a sum of things, not just things.

What I mean is what defines us as individuals is the synergy that comes from our life stories, our experiences and us being influenced and influencing.. categories do not necessarily decide what we stand for or that we get along with others in that category. It's values, idea(l)s, ethics..

[lotnik2007]

I am so proud that you are doing this and I hope to see more people proud to be mixed. I think that in a way we are America. In our veins courses the very essence of what America is - DIVERSITY. And in that we are beautiful and should celebrate that beauty...

[lotnik2007]

I am proud to be French-Creole (with Black-Foot and Choctaw) through my father's side and German/Cuban through my mothers side. I hated how I have always been force to just mark black on those piffy little surveys which try so hard to neatly categorize us all.

[TubeStomp]

I am the epitome of the futuristic human race!

[eatcerealx]

I'm proud to be a "hapa". I'm half Korean, Scotch-Irish, Mexican, Spanish, and English. It's kind of funny to see people's reactions when I tell them what I am - they always say something like, "I thought you were Italian!"

[frankieosf]

I agree...with "digg000" and "rorchach". I'm what you call "mixed race". Jewish, mexican, austrian and God knows what else might be there. But Id rather just call myself an American...I think if we stop looking at ourselves as "half this" or "quater that"...and just look at ourselves as Americans, we'll find ourselves more a more united U.S

[jn91669]

I grew up dark skinned. Most people thought I was either puerto rican or mulatto; I am neither and it did not make me feel the need to distinguish myself from others, I was a human being first and foremost,and then an American. What my mixed ethnic background is had no bearing on how I grew up.My parents raised me to be proud of myself not because of my ethnic back grounds but because of my personal achievements. Solutions and problems stem from one's own perception of the world not visa-versa.

[JLMHP]

Thats awesome that your parents were able to do that. Unfotunatley most people are not able to do that. Its human nature to find something that seperates you from the rest. I agree that ideal situations about race would be to not need to have these discussions at all, but thats not reality right now. I mentioned this before but; I think the issue is more that racial lines dont exist but cultural ones do. Before we can eliminate the discussion we need to educate people on the difference.

[jn91669]

Race is a societal construct that does not exist on a biological level. There are not enough biological differences to separate us into races. All this does is perpetuate a bad idea of race and keeps us separated. Would it be so horrible to see us all as one race and one species? What most describe as being racism is their own projections and perceptions.

[JLMHP]

I think the issue being raised here is actually using the terms culture and race interchangably. Most people associate certain races with certain cultural types, and then behave accordingly and before a roughly century ago, with not much (voluntary) immigration that was mostly true. Lots of people cannot deal with the fact that (for example) people can look ethnically Chinese but be culturally Canadian and those problems are magnified when more than one race is in the mix.

[digg0000000]

America is obsessed with race.. get over yourselves

[hamoana4]

How insightful of you. Race permeates everything in American society. It affects our choice of where we live & work, where we choose to send our kids to school, what we watch or listen in the media, personal relationships, family, friends, workplace relations, choice of partner/mate etc etc. Yes, i'd tend to agree with you!

[rorschach8585]

I suppose my kids can answer the "what are you?" question by saying that mommie's white and daddy's Indonesian...but a simple and resounding "I'm an AMERICAN" will suffice.

[rorschach8585]

I am 100% Indonesian, but that's irrelevant, because most people have no clue what that means or where Indonesia is on the map. It's a good thing racists don't need to know "what are you?"...they just need to know that you're not white. My wife is caucasian, and we have two kids together. It'll be interesting to see what effects my children's multiracial background will have on them as they grow up. Growing up in DC & living in PA has been a non-issue, but we did attract stares down south.

[usnutter]

Ultimately one's cultural environment determines what one "feels" that "they" are. That environment provides ongoing stimulus up to say early adulthood just before leaving home/neighborhood. Its when one becomes an adult & has to face new challenges in finding their own way out in the general society that the "multicultural adult" has to come up with options of how to deal with those "challenges" - challenges that are usually in the form of racism, whether it be overt, or more subtle & insidious

[usnutter]

I was born in Samoa, raised in New Zealand & am the father of a biracial child here in Louisville, Kentucky, USA having moved here in 2001. I am struck by how harsh & contradictory Americans are on peoples expression of themselves if it somehow detracts from the notion of being "american". I think this is ultimately the "challenge" multiethnic peoples refer to about their lives here. Ive come to believe that RACISM is what drives or even defines American life!

[lukasrossy123]

Louie is cute. luscious lips and notice how you can see his cute little dimple just by the side of his lips when he talks.

[lbg4499]

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

I've been asked that question "So what are you anyway?" for about 45 years.

I still gte asked that.

I'm very proud to be a "hapa" and your video made me cry. You're my hero.

[Tuxster3]

I think a better question is how much of a particular ethnicity makes one oneself.

I'm an African-American guy.

However, with a legacy of American slavery running through my cultural veins and having medium brown skin -- not dark, not light -- does this mean I'm mixed race?

I'm sure I have white and other blood many generations back. Would this account for something?

Again, my point is what makes one oneself?

[guy627]

You know, my paternal Grandmother was born in a log cabin in Ohio, and the rest of my heritage all came from afar. I have never gotten into geneology, but maybe someday. What do I mark down on those annoying forms? Caucasian. What am I? I am an American!

[invdrzim]

I posted an old video I made in response to this video.

-b

[anomalyJCD]

I was at the Mixed ROAR retreat. Thanks Louie for starting this online conversation! I posted a video response.

[cindybro]

great idea and awesome video! much needed. looking forward to viewing all the replies.

[jobs4julius]

whoa! I like those picture's. Where is the picture of aunty Rene. I remember that house. I wish I could see a picture of all the sisters together. Miranda came to me out in lummi and I told her to respond to your video. I am at the college at the moment( payday). Later, go to the casino.

[PLRODARTE]

Good idea Louie, Poo in the out house? Holy

[monsteruva1995]

What a terrific opportunity to share how our race/ethnicity and where/how we grew up create our individual responses to the question "What Are You?" Thanks for helping our community reclaim this question.

[CollidgeStoodint]

What a great idea! I'm going to add mine as soon as I can get my hands on a camera!

[gongj]

This is a great idea - I hope that everyone posts their unique and 'mixed' response (no pun intended) :). In response to your video, I wanted to comment that despite us being related, our experience varies as shaped by our definition of identity and others perception of us... Either way our experiences translate to the commonalities of being mixed; the fusion of cuisines, uber-interesting cultural upbringings etc. Thanks for sharing your story.

[staceeah]

This is a great idea Louie! I loved your video and I am excited to see all the responses!

[chrystalfaria]

I have finally realized that being of mixed cultures is the most amazing,beautiful and diverse any person could ever ask for...I grew up with no identity, lost and confused I never knew who I really was and I have now found who I am... me a beautiful Chinese, Native American,German and French Canadian and am GLAD to be! Love the idea and video! im the cute one on the right!

[chrystalfaria]

good Idea love the video! love it!

[muckleshootpr]

cool. i just posted a response.

[myfriendesther]

This is a wonderful idea! I can't wait to see all the responses.

[Mai4M]

Thanks Louie! I'm of mixed ancestry myself! Loved the video!

[CKFAN1986]

cool vid! pretty Sweet!

[jagsakay]

Thanks for putting a positive spin on that annoying question. You are what ever you self-identify as - and that can change whenever you want. Don't buy into other folk's discomfort with your racial ambiguity. You don't have to own that. Celebrate who you are as an individual!

[LadyCedahlia]

Mixed is more than beautiful, it is strong. It says we are all in this together. I am Canadian, my surname originated in Syria, and my recent bloodlines come from Germany, Native America, and China. What am I? I am a proud child of the world.