What are Youtube?

This is a cool little idea, cause you know how much people like taking videos of them (lol, though actually only 5 people replied surprisingly) check it out:



This kid actually asked people what they were and to make a short video of it. I like how the videos are all different in how they reply and how it has some moms with their kids. One of the responses is super short, another is really long. All of them are interesting, maybe I should do one...??

What the mutt?

Haha, just loved this title that was one of the sections of this new website I found: Musings for Mutts. I am still uncertain what it is... I think it is kind of like this blog but more well-run and professional. It seems really fun, it really puts being multiracial in a humorous light (that is still respectful). I am still unsure, though, like I said of what it is, though I only have skimmed it thus far, I plan on looking more into it. It has a great layout, if anything.

Obama is now Irish, Kenyan/African American, AND Asian now...

So I find it fascinating on how, for multiracial people, so many people identify with them. I mean, look at this:



and this article: Obama the first Asian-American president?

And even from multiracial people I have heard, they say how people will think they are many different cultures. To Italians, they are Italian, to Greeks, they are Greek, to Spanish, they are Spanish, and so forth. That maybe an amazing or bad thing about multiraciality. It connects cultures in the very basic way: genes, and then others will be able to identify with them no matter where they are. The only problem with that is that other people are imposing identities on you, and its got to become frustrating. But all these articles about multiraciality and every culture claiming Obama (who wouldn't?) as their own really made me think.

Another Washington Post Article

So its all old news to us multiracials, but the problem of the box-checking seems to be coming to light once again as formats are going to change:

"Starting in 2010, under Education Department rules approved two years ago to comply with a government-wide policy shift, parents will be able to check all boxes that apply in a two-step questionnaire with reshaped categories. First, they will indicate whether a student is of Hispanic or Latino origin, or not. (The two terms will encompass one group.) Then they will identify a student as one or more of the following: American Indian or Alaska native; Asian; black or African American; native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander; or white."

I apparently didn't realize that this was still an issue. But it seems to be, still as the article came out in just March. This is the article.

Anyway its an interesting read, although it wasn't really anything new to me :)

Interacial marriage declines

So turns out that interracial marriage is declining... so much for how everyone thinks that multiracial marriage is going to be the cure-all for racism. The Washington Post made this article: Immigrants' Children Look Closer for Love. Its interesting, I have only skimmed it yet. I thought it was funny though - racialicious and angry asian man blogs both caught this one earlier. I actually did see it awhile ago, but I think I was too lazy to put it up. It almost makes me a little sad though, less mixed people? I think mixed people are the best ;) but you know, that's just me :)

This is an image from the article, with the girl saying that she realizes she prefers dating Asian men when she came into cultural clashes with others of different races.

Though I have to say I get where she is coming from, I have seen in my own parents' marriage (which is very happy!) different kinds of cultural clashes. I think, actually, my Dad, being the international one, had a hard time fitting into an all-white family here, while my mother had less of a problem because they lived here, around her family. But I am sure, that if she had to live around my Dad's family there would have been lots of problems. Not saying my Mother had it easy, just culturally things swayed her way in the end I think. I also think it is a mother thing, too, as mother's tend to be the cultural center a lot of times (not all of the time) for the family.

A video

This is a really cool video, this person is clearly artistic enough to make a really nice video. I like the way its presented - it doesn't get boring or repetitive. They seem really smart and bring a lot of issues to the foreground. Its just sometimes some of the issues a lot of mixed race people have like people asking "What are you?" - I dunno. I don't find as offensive. Admittedly, I have done it before, too. I like that, cause then i can declare my ethnicity to people, and they are confronted with how I define myself instead of automatically assuming what I am. But I understand the whole frustration thing. Its a really good video though and a few of the parts, like the piece with the girl telling her how it was "cool" to be mixed, really made sense.

iLL-Literacy

So Asian American Coalition is bringing iLL-Literacy to campus this Wednesday and honestly the only thing that has stuck out for me about the group is one of the members is blasian and he made this video:


So that is the most exciting thing about the group for me ^_^ but I have to say that they seem really interesting and good. This video though - its awesome. Cause it blatantly puts out there how image-based race is and how these mono-racial asian groups can't see past that, and are kind of exclusive. I love his commentary, too :)

Cool Project

So i found this random project and its really cool! This is the site. Its called the "bi-racial doll project" and it deals with how bi-racials in China are seen as so super beautiful. I think that this is good cause while it would be great to be bombarded with how pretty I am in China (lol) I think that this is also a stereotyped notion and is really detrimental to bi-racial Chinese. Cause if you really aren't so pretty, then you get this stigma. Also, there is great beauty in full-Chinese, too (man do I wish I was as pretty as some of these women!), so being bi-racial should not automatically make you prettier. It actually puts TONS of pressure on bi-racials to be pretty and try to maintain that image. I could really relate cause the most Chinese (women only, so far) all comment on my prettiness which wierdly has a stupid side-effect of making me more self-concious and needed to keep up this appearance. I think I will look into this project some more. This is the description that was provided on the site:

"Bi-racial Doll Project is an attempt to look at the stereotypes which people in China (both Chinese local and foreign) have about kids who are 1/2 Chinese. Many parents agree that when they take their child outside in China, they are bombarded with comments about how MORE 'beautiful, cute, healthy, smart, handsome, talented, etc' their 1/2 child is compared to Chinese kids. Another aspect is that these comments are only accessible to both child and parent if they have the language, otherwise it is easy to tune out this babble. Furthermore, people already have an image formed in their head of what a 1/2 Chinese child should look like, act like. This project hopes to challenge those notions."

Apparently Biracial Asians have some health issues...

So I just found this article: Mental Health and Biracial Asian Americans

Apparently us biracial Asian Americans got issues - mental issues, and are more likely to have a mental disorder. It kind of sucks, actually. The article was written last August so it isn't that old either. I mean, it definitely could be wrong... (I hope so!)

But you know what the worst is? When you google "biracial Asian Americans" its the first thing that comes up - there is an entire google page all leadign to this finding. Great, so now when people look us up, they're basically seeing that we are all mentally messed up :(

Lecture Today

So I went to a lecture-type faculty luncheon talk today that was offered by Peony Fhagen-Smith, a professor of psychology here at Wheaton. She gave an interesting lecture about the multiracial identity formation model. Its called the "MAREID" model and it is really new, they just are in the process. I really appreciate it cause they are trying to keep up with the changing social atmosphere towards mixed race and the psychological development of mixed race. I will put in the actual image of the model later when I can get my hands on a scanner. But overall, it was really interesting, if kind of boriign at times, just because she basically read off a piece of paper, it was not as engaging as it might have been. Some of it really seemed to ring true and some of it was over my head.

But in the end I was kind of upset at some fo the faculty's reactions. One woman said "I could have told you that just because of my family, and how I come from a multiracial family" and I was angry. She is supposed to be a faculty member, surely she understands the necessity for academia to create a more general model that she can identify with. I could have told Professor Fhagen-Smith some of that stuff too, but havng it at arms length with and attempt at removal of emotional bias is what science is all about. I was surprised she didn't understand that.

All-in-all it was a good experience and I learned a lot. I think I want to talk to Professor Fhagen Smith some other time about it, too.

Online communities

So this is a aquick post but I think I should have put these up first, cause they actually were the first "communities" of mixed race people that I found. I was just online and I finally started to google "mixed race" versus "asian" - and I found these places. This is mixedrace.com and eurasiannation.com. Actually I just checked and Eurasiannation is under construction right now. But I found these two communities of people who just talk about hapa, mixed race, or just random stuff. They are not super active, but they are decent - mixedrace is probably more active (in general, even when EAN was not under construction). I found limitation though in these forums. I like the person-to-person interaction, online just can't cut it. But they were important to me in the beginning :)

Cool Website

So I should have done this awhile ago but I just googled "mixed race news" and this website pops up. I haven't found anything so specifically mixed race and such a store of information! I have yet to really go through it though I think this one will be a better site then others I have found. It has things like events, in the news, even poetry and celebs! I will definitely check out more of it later and post what I find probably.

Conference

There is a conference this summer, and awesomely enough, I happen to be in LA visiting family at that time anyway! The venue is the Japanese American National Museum. It is from June 12th at 10 AM to June 13th at 8:30 PM. It is called "Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival" and the schedule seems very interesting. This is the site for it. There seems to be some great discussions and workshops! I had a hard time choosing what events I wanted to go to, which is always a good sign although it is difficult :)

Mixed Chicks Chat

Sooo somehow Mixed Chicks Chat has found this blog, and I am very happy for it! They are a great podcast that talks about mixed race issues. I actually was planning on putting them up earlier, crazy enough. I have listened to a few of the shows before though I am horrible about keeping up with weekly shows (TV or otherwise unfortunately). Here is the site: mixed chicks chat (I am still unsure about how to upload audio yet)