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ARTICLES:
Politics and Society
The
Explosion In Mixed Race Studies By Erica Schlaikjer April 2003 Just five years ago, you would have been hard-pressed to find a college course that addressed mixed race issues. But ever since 7 million people self-identified as multiracial in the 2000 census by choosing two or more races, the interest in mixed race studies has exploded. At least sixteen universities across the country—from New Haven, CT to Santa Barbara, CA—offer classes that explore the social implications of being mixed in America. A mixed race movement is clearly taking form: politically, socially, and now, educationally. "We start at the personal level, and then move to the social and historical issues of race," says Professor Robert Allen, who teaches a class called People of Mixed Racial Descent at the University of California, Berkeley. The students' first assignment is to write a 2-3 page autobiographical essay describing how they became aware of their racial and ethnic identity, what they learned, and how it has defined them. The class, one of the first of its kind, was established in 1981 by Native American professor Terry Wilson. It began as a response to the growth of the mixed race population, especially in California's Bay Area, as well as student interest on campus. Historically, the West has always been very multiracial because of high immigration levels and an early end to laws against interracial marriage. Forty percent of the 6.8 million U.S. residents who checked off more than one box for race live in the West, so it's no wonder many mixed race studies courses originate in states like California. Allen's class has over a hundred students. About half are multiracial (of "all imaginable, possible combinations,") others are involved in interracial relationships, and some are neither. Allen uses a variety of literature, texts, readings, films, and speakers to teach the subject matter. An anthology edited by Teresa Williams-Leon and Berkeley Graduate student Cynthia Nakashima "The Sum of Our Parts" and Dr. Maria Root's "The Multiracial Experience: Racial Borders As the New Frontier" serve almost as "textbooks" in the class, although, many fictitious novels telling stories of mixed people around the world are also included in the course's critical analysis of race. Another approach to mixed race studies is finding where one fits in the bigger picture. Prof. Steven Ropp teaches Biracial and Multiracial Identity in the U.S. at California State University, Northridge. He stresses the importance of "being a part of all the communities we belong to, by having a presence, communicating, staying active." The class he currently teaches began about six years ago under the tutelage of Teresa Williams-Leon, professor and co-editor of "The Sum of Our Parts: Mixed Heritage Asian Americans." This year is the first year Ropp has taught the class. His vision is to create a general multiracial studies class, in hopes that it will draw more students than a class catered to a specific ethnic group. There are three course objectives: 1) to understand the history of race and racism, 2) to gain an understanding of the multiracial experience in different communities, and 3) to examine the integral role multiracial people have in post-civil rights "identity politics." The class is diverse, comprising Asians, part-Asians, monoracial students, and one Creole. "I want the students to understand their role in the community and society," he says. Ropp asks the students to organize a campus-wide event and share it with the college community to emphasize service and activism. However, Ropp believes, "We [multiracial people] shouldn't have to be the only ones to be a bridge, to facilitate harmony." Racial issues affect society as a whole, not just the individual person. On the east coast, Professor Jennifer Chan teaches Asian-Americans of Mixed Heritage at New York University. She believes that "thinking about mixed race allows us to understand most clearly the way that race is shaped and defined in this country." She is excited about the emergence of mixed race studies. "I think it's terrific. For a long time, mixed race individuals have been both very present and yet absent in the cultural discussions over race. I am glad to see a discussion about mixed race becoming louder, more articulate and more sophisticated." Mixed people have traditionally been forced to fit into one racial category, and oftentimes, they assume the role of "the other" - those that aren't Caucasian. But Prof. Allen insists that these categories "don't make sense except from the standpoint of racial oppression," and therefore are becoming "more and more archaic." "The concept of mixed race is ambiguous and evolving," Allen observes, "but at least there is a recognition of it now." No longer are mixed people considered "pathological" or "degenerate", as they once were, for example, when anti-miscegenation laws prohibited interracial marriages prior to 1967. However, there still exists an "exoticism" towards people of mixed racial descent. Allen says, "that makes it hard for them to express their personal identity." There are disagreements, even amongst students, about the best way to approach mixed race studies. Should all mixed people be lumped in together? Or should academics recognize the cultural differences between mixed people of say, Asian heritage, versus those of African heritage? Paul Young, Co-President of the Hapa Issues Forum (HIF) founding chapter at UC Berkeley was a student in Robert Allen's class. "I was a little disappointed," he confessed. "There was too much literature . . . It felt like an English class." While realizing that learning about history is important, Paul says he was "looking for a more contemporary approach . . . The class was supposed to give us a vocabulary and dialogue to talk about mixed race studies." Paul, half-Cantonese/half-British, found that his Contemporary Asian American Issues class was more suited to his tastes. It touched on current Hapa issues, such as transracial adoptees, pop culture and media trends, sexual identity, and interracial dating. "It was about what was going on NOW. Real-life experience. I liked that," he says. Prof. Allen's Ethnic Studies lecture was bigger and more diverse than Paul's Asian American Studies class (130 students from all ethnic backgrounds compared to 40, mostly monoracial Asian students), but he felt "closer to home." "Yeah, you need a core class [like Prof. Allen's] that covers everything about the history of race," Paul says, "but to really relate to people, you have to separate the different ethnic groups." Professor Gloria Bogdan teaches a class called Mixed Heritage Asian Americans at California State, Fullerton. At first she thought her class was going to be "a whole bunch of white people, because they should be the ones who should be learning about mixed race." But it turns out that only three white students signed up, and the rest were Asians and Hapas. Enrollment is still low—only about 20 people—because it "hasn't caught on," but Bogdan has "wonderful support" from the faculty, including teachers of other disciplines, and hopes that people will become more interested. However, because of budget problems, 80 classes at the school might have to be cut and Bogdan fears that many diversity classes will be lost. "Why cut diversity classes? Here in Orange County, you don't only see whites, do you?" Prof. Bogdan sees the future headed towards mixed race studies, even though we live in a society that says "math and science degrees get you the bigger bucks." "I would love to be teaching in 50 years," Bogdan remarks. "It'll be so mixed." As for now, Bogdan says, "We have to get a new regime with younger blood. My generation isn't going to live forever." Prof. Bogdan is fighting bladder cancer. About
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