Racial Identity
I find it interesting how (American) people with one African American parent and one white parent can have their ethnicity described or celebrated differently, according to the situation.
If Wentworth Miller (Prison Break star) had become US president instead of Obama would he be described as the first black president?
Meghan Markle is being described in the UK as “mixed race”.
If Barack Obama married a British royal, would be called black or African American or mixed race?
Seems to me that both culture and looks/skin tone are factors in how they are described. More common around the world, people of mixed race have had their own racial definition, like mulatto in Latin America or coloured in South Africa. Mulatto was used in the USA until 80 years ago, and was seemingly dropped for racial reasons, as racists thought people needed to be either black or white.
I guess one day race will disappear as races, and racial looks, mix more and more. But until then it will be a label, sometimes for racist reasons, but mainly it’s just an easy way to describe someone’s looks, like pretty/ugly, tall/short, fat/skinny, redhead/blonde or walks with a limp. It’s just a lazy description.
And meanwhile there will be a growth in “racial identity” which can be as different to how you are born as transgender people.