Interracial dating among young people
Monday, 01 June 2009
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By now most people know that President Barack Obama is a product of black and white dating or marriage for that matter. He was born to a white mother and black father and he spent most of his childhood with his white grandparents from Kansas.
Multicultural, biracial, mixed-race, interracial are the names people have used to describe the likes of Obama. Most off-springs from black and white dating and unions have had such a rough time growing up. And the greatest issue has been the issue of identity. And much as we had the likes of Halle Berry before, it kind of seems that having a recognizable face like the president’s (a face that commands so much respect) to match the term is such a big deal. And now more than ever, they believe that anything is possible for them.
Most biracial kids have never had it easy growing up. Kristine Brown is a product of black and white dating. When her mother (white) found out she was pregnant out of wedlock and was going to have a ‘black’ child, she was disowned. She then got adopted by a white couple and grew up in an all-white neighborhood.
Much as Kristine’s adoptive parents encouraged her to have a healthy identity and taught her that she didn’t have to absorb black stereotypes to feel strong about her identity she had difficulty in the predominantly white school she was attending where she was berated by teachers and even had her hair set on fire.
Looking back, there are a lot of off-springs of black and white dating who have had to face racial issues and up until 2000, these black-white mixed-race individuals had to choose either black or white as their race while census reports were being filled out.Today, mixed-race individuals have a separate category. And since this category is fairly new in the U.S. Census Bureau, it’s hard to gauge the exact increase in mixed-race children.
Obama has discussed openly about his own struggle with racial identity and this is making people talking about it in a less painful way. With the increase in black and white dating and marriages over the past two decades, the racial make-up of most communities has changed and so have the attitudes towards mixed-race individuals and families. And with Obama to identify with, most people believe that mixed-race individuals can be themselves and not have to fit in one racial group or the other. His book also makes mixed-race individuals feel that they can go through that struggle and still emerge as respectable persons within the society.
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
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Interracial dating among young people
Fewer young people are against interracial dating. Today, the young generation – as young as high school students – have began a quiet revolution which could bring about the shift in the way US citizens deal with race issues. And when it comes to interracial dating, Generation Y seems not to be having much of an issue with it. Its just dating … not thinking twice about the fact that their partner may be a different race than their own.
Going by the 1997 Gallup poll, 57% of teenagers across the country who go out on dates say they’ve dated someone of a different race or ethnic group. Most of the respondents say immigration of Asians and Hispanics has increased the probability of people hooking up with people from other racial and ethnic groups hence the increase in interracial dating. Schools have become diverse and people are now getting used to growing up with different races, and are feeling comfortable with it. And this is why most teens see interracial dating as no big a deal … just dating. Many are dating interracially and those who haven’t say they wouldn’t mind doing it.
Parents of Generation Y are becoming less of an obstacle too with 62% of parents of teens say they would be totally alright with their children dating interracially. This doesn’t come as a surprise since most parents with teens are in their 30s and early 40s. This means they have some liberal attitudes from the civil rights revolution hence being generally accepting of interracial relationships and having more positive reactions to their children’s dating choices.
Some parents however still insist on their children dating within their race. The best way for parents to accept this is for the teenager to bring the date home with a group of friends and let them get to know the family. Getting the parents to know your partner before passing judgment is the key.
In general, racial barriers are coming down as students try out interracial dating … for love or intrigue. And with increased individuality, diversity and greater minority enrollment in colleges and universities more students grow up to be more tolerant and approving towards interracial relationships.
But much as most young people are for cross cultural dating, one aspect still is unexplored – most Whites who date Blacks don’t have a Blacks only policy, however, most Blacks who date Whites seem to have a Whites only policy. Why is that? -
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