The Lines of Color Arent Always Clear

1
The Lines of Color Arent Always Clear

• Linda Ueki Absher
• Portland State University Library

2
Overview

• Multiracials is there a definition?
• Who are they?
• History and Stereotypes
• Major Research Topics
• Issues regarding research and access
• Resources
• Print/Online
• Web/Web 2.0

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Multiracials A Definition?

• US Census technically no multiracial or
  biracial category
• Instead of allowing a multiracial category.
  the OMB adopted the Interagency Committee's
  recommendation to allow respondents to select
  one or more races when they self-identify
• Has never used the same race categories for more
  than three consecutive censuses

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Multiracials Who Are They?

• 2.4 of the U.S. population
• Mostly from Generation Y (5-24)
• 42 of multiracials are under 18
• Might be due to changing attitudes towards
  identity
• Second Largest Group? Baby Boomers!
• Most common identification?
• White and another race

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Who Are They? (continued)

• Location 40 live in the West
• Live in large metro areas in large, diversely
  populated states
• Education (25 age group)
• 22 -- Some college (21 total US)
• 12.6 -- Bachelors degree (15.5)
• 26.7 -- Less than an HS degree
• Compare with total US 19.6

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History and Stereotypes

• Then
• Tragic Mulatto
• Sayonara/Love is A Many Splendored Thing
• Evil (Temptress/Rapist/Violent)
• Amerasian Orphan
• Sage/Mystic (Native American)
• Now
• Beautiful/Exotic (models, celebrities, etc)
• Sexual
• Sad and Confused Tragic Mulatto redux

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The Reality
Images courtesy of Kip Fulbeck
http//www.seaweedproductions.com/hapa/default.htm

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The Reality
Images courtesy of Kip Fulbeck
http//www.seaweedproductions.com/hapa/default.htm

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The Reality
Images courtesy of Kip Fulbeck
http//www.seaweedproductions.com/hapa/default.htm

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Major Research Topics

• Identity
• Intersection with other identities (gender,
  class, age, etc.)
• Passing and appearance issues
• History/Politics
• Categorization, census, laws, etc.
• Adoption
• Families
• Relationships

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Interracial Studies Research The Poor Stepchild

• Not a separate field of study
• Usually subsumed under other fields
• Works clustered mostly in the Social Sciences
• Sociology, Psychology, Social Work, Education,
  etc.
• Fiction/Memoirs
• Juvenile Literature

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Interracial Studies Research

• The Bible
• Multiracial America a resource guide on the
  history and literature of interracial issues /
  Karen Downing, et al

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As a Field of Study.

• New field of research
• Most published within last 15-20 years
• Difficult to locate materials using traditional
  library tools
• Inconsistent terminology
• LC Subject Headings Classifications
• Results often muddied with off-topic retrievals
• Eurasian geology, etc.
• Interracial labor organizing, groups, etc.
• Some materials may be biased, inaccurate and/or
  offensive

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LC Subject Headings

• LC Subject Headings Old? Outdated? Offensive?
• Children of interracial marriage
• Racially mixed children
• Racially mixed people
• Outdated subject headings still linger in records
• e.g., Miscegenation, Mulattoes, etc.

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LC Classifications The Poor Stepchild

• Many resources located in the E184-E185.98 range
• E184 Elements in the Population --racial,
  ethnic and religious groups that have
  significance in the history of the US
• E185-E185.98 African Americans
• HQ777.9 Racially mixed children
• HQ1031 Interracial offspring

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Notable Authors/Works

• Maria Root
• One of the earliest published scholars on
  multiracial identity
• Black, White, Other Biracial Americans Talk
  about Race and Identity, Lise Funderburg
• Half and Half Writers on Growing Up Biracial and
  Bicultural, Claudine OHearn

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Databases

• Dissertation Abstracts
• Best resource re interracial issues as a distinct
  research area
• No subject headings ever-changing keywords
• Ethnic Newswatch
• Features articles from ethnic and minority
  presses
• Not quite as strong as an academic resource
• Subject headings have changed

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Databases (continued)

• PsycInfo
• Subject Heading Interracial Offspring
• Not applied consistently
• Masterfile
• Excellent general resource
• Multiraciality??

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The World Wide Web

• More defined topic
• Hundreds of sites dedicated to all aspects of
  this topic
• Less academic, reliable info
• Loop more mulitracial/biracial folks finding
  information and each other, the more information
  and interest generated.

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Notable Websites - General Information

• Stanford University Research Quick Start Guide
  Ethnic Identity
• Resources By and About Interracial
  Multi-Cultural People www-personal.umich.edu/kd
  own/multi.html

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Notable Websites - General Information
Stanford University Research Quick Start
Guide library.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/adams/short
cu/ethi.html
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Online Journals Interracial Voice

• Interracial Voice www.webcom.com/intvoice/

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Online Journal Multiracial Activist
Multiracial Activist multiracial.com/site
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Organizations/Associations
Association of MultiEthnic Americans (AMEA)
www.ameasite.org
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Organizations/Associations

• Project Race www.projectrace.com

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Organizations/Associations

• MAVIN www.mavin.net

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Organizations/Associations

• Swirl www.swirlinc.org

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Web 2.0

• MySpace! (http//myspace.com)
• Several biracial/multiracial groups
• mixedrace.com
• Youtube.com
• Several videos of Jen Chau of Swirl.com
  (Addicted to Race)

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MySpace Hapas
http//groups.myspace.com/hapas
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MySpace Mixed Race
http//groups.myspace.com/mixed
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mixedrace.com
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YouTube.com Addicted to Race
http//youtube.com/watch?vTJ8WXxnN0TI
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Conclusions

• Traditional resources and avenues of research
• Fragmented, inconsistent
• Usually tacked on with another area of study
• Growing interest evidenced by Dissertation
  Abstracts

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Conclusions

• World Wide Web
• More resources begin appearing
• Guides, associations, electronic lists
• Creating more interest in the subject?
• Web 2.0
• Explosion of interest
• Demand will probably drive the development of
  information resources

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Questions?

• Online resources and links
• http//del.icio.us/absherl/multiracial
• Presentation http//web.pdx.edu/absherl/jclc/jcl
  c.ppt

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Thank You!

• Linda Ueki Absher absherl_at_pdx.edu