Opinion: The Silenced Battle of Multi- and Bi- Racial Families
posted by Victoria Walker | November 15, 2021 | In News, OpinionAs a mixed child growing up in America you have a different set of challenges you face and sometimes those challenges are presented in your family, too.
Netflix released a limited series with former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick entitled: Colin in Black & White, In the show he not only highlights the struggles of being mixed (but appearing Black) in a white world but being adopted by white parents.
One of the scenes that stood out to me the most was him being racially profiled in the hotel and him and his parents being confronted by a white woman. His parents thought she was being nice, but Kaepernick knew it was because he was black and asking them for a dollar. This scene personally reminded me of the time me and my sister (mixed but appear white) was in the store with my biological grandfather (black) when he was stopped by security to be asked how he knew us and if we were safe.
This happens all too often in America for mixed kids and family based on skin colors and looks. So often that by a certain age we are almost expecting it to happen, and we are used to all the people staring.
Appearance was another big thing Kaepernick showed in the show and how being in a mixed family comes with a struggle of not understanding how certain hair types look and need to be taken care of. For example, when he got cornrows, his white parents saw him as looking like a “thug.” For me it was my family not knowing how to take care of biracial hair so they would cornrow it back something that is perceived by other Black families as cultural appropriation, but I wouldn’t realize that until I was much older.
The show also hinted at the struggles Kaepernick faced with having white friends versus Black friends and never-ending struggle of how they think about each other. Being mixed in a world where racism is still at an all-time high is a completely different and disheartening journey. For Kaepernick, it was his friend’s making fun of him liking a Black girl because she was too dark for their standards. In my world it is having white people openly say something racist, not knowing that they just insulted the grandparents that raised me and the race I identify with more.
Mixed families and kids face struggles too, but they are often unseen or heard about until now. The struggles of fitting in with one race more than the other because you feel more at home and more like yourself. The internal struggles because your family just does not understand because they haven’t had to face it. The struggle of feeling like your problems do not matter because there are bigger racial issues going on in the world.
The show did a very good job showing the different mentalities that float around in mixed families and how they have their own sets of struggles beyond what you see in America.
Photo courtesy of The Focal Project
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