Blackness, Hypodescent, and Essentialism: Commentary on McPherson and Shelby’s “Blackness and Blood”

Posted in Literary/Artistic Criticism, Media Archive, United States on 2010-07-02 16:18Z by Steven

Blackness, Hypodescent, and Essentialism: Commentary on McPherson and Shelby’s “Blackness and Blood”

Symposia on Gender, Race and Philosophy
Volume 1, Number 1, May 2005

Gregory Velazco y Trianosky, Professor of Philosopy
California State University, Northridge

In their fascinating and thoughtful paper, McPherson and Shelby seek to defend everyday African American understandings of their own identity against the critique launched by Anthony Appiah in his Tanner lectures. I have no deep disagreements with their defense. Instead I will propose what I hope are useful clarifications of some of the key claims in that defense, and perhaps some further contribution to the discussion they have begun.

1. Roughly speaking, Appiah argues as follows: (1) African Americans typically adhere to the rule of hypodescent, understood as a criterion for membership in the group of black people. However, says Appiah, in conjunction with (2) the nationalist belief that black people owe special obligations of support or group solidarity to other black people, this adherence is problematic. For the truth is that (3) many phenotypically white people in the United States in fact have black ancestors and thus, by a strict application of the rule of hypodescent, are black rather than white, regardless of appearance. Given this fact, (4) adherence to the rule of hypodescent requires black people (insofar as they are nationalists) to extend to many phenotypically white people the same kind of support they believe they owe to all black people. But this means (5) that the actions of black nationalists will, insofar as they are based on the facts, undermine the very project of black nationalism. Appiah goes on to argue that in cases where a group’s beliefs about its identity undermine its own political and social projects, the liberal state should intervene to “soul-make,” that is, to reshape the understanding that group has of itself…

Read the entire commentary here.

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New Faces in a Changing America: Multiracial Identity in the 21st Century

Posted in Africa, Anthologies, Books, Brazil, Census/Demographics, Media Archive, Politics/Public Policy, Social Science, South Africa, United States, Women on 2009-10-16 03:06Z by Steven

New Faces in a Changing America: Multiracial Identity in the 21st Century

SAGE Publications, Inc.
Paperback ISBN: 9780761923008
2001
432 pages

Edited by

Loretta I. Winters
California State University, Northridge

Herman L. DeBose
California State University, Northridge

How multiracial people identify themselves can have major consequences on their positions in their families, communities and society. Even the U.S. Census has recognized the rapidly increasing numbers of those who consider themselves multiracial, adding a new racial category to the 2000 Census form: two or more races.

New Faces in a Changing America: Multiracial Identity in the 21st Century examines the multiracial experience, its history and the political issues and consequences surrounding biracial and multiracial identity, bringing together top names in the field to give readers cutting edge views and insights gained from contemporary research.

This important new text follows the trail blazed by Maria Root, who contributes its opening chapter. An introduction places the issues of multiracial identity into context via a discussion of U.S. Census data and debates, providing an overview of the varied readings to come covering such topics as:

  • Race as a social, rather than biological, construction
  • The Multiracial Movement
  • Racial/Ethnic Groups in America and Beyond
  • Race, Gender & Hierarchy
  • Gang Affiliation and Self-Esteem
  • Black/White Interracial Couples and the Beliefs that Help Them to Bridge the Racial Divide

The book concludes with “The Multiracial Movement: Harmony and Discord,” by co-editor Loretta Winters, an epilogue putting the readings into perspective according to three models in the multiracial identity literature: the Multiracial Movement model, the Counter Multiracial movements model and the Ethnic Movement model.

Timely and comprehensive in its range of topics, this is an important resource for many audiences: students in Ethnic Studies, Race Relations and related courses; human service professionals including psychologists, counselors, social workers and school personnel and, importantly, multiracial individuals themselves.

Forward  
Introduction Herman L. DeBose
Acknowledgments  
PART I: RACE AS A SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION  
1. Five Mixed Race Identities: From Relic to Revolution Maria P. P. Root
2. The New Multiracialism: An Affirmation or an End to Race as we Know It? Mary Thierry Texeira
PART II: THE MULTIRACIAL MOVEMENT  
3. New Faces, Old Faces: Counting the Multiracial Population (Click here to read.) Ann Morning
4. Multiracial Identity: From Personal Problem to Public Issue Kimberly McClain DaCosta
5. From Civil Rights to the Multiracial Movement Kim M. Williams
6. Census 2000: Assessments in Significance Rainier Spencer
7. Evolution of Multiracial Organizations: Where We Have Been & Where We Are Going Nancy G. Brown & Ramona E. Douglas
PART III: RACIAL/ETHNIC GROUPS IN AMERICA & BEYOND  
8. The Dilemma of Biracial People of African American Descent Herman L. DeBose & Loretta L. Winters
9. Check All That Apply: Trends & Perspectives Among Asian Descent Multiracials Teresa Williams-Leon
10. Beyond Mestizaje: The Future of Race in America Gregory Velazco y Trianosky
11. Colonization, Cultural Imperialism, and the Social Construction of American Indian Mixed Blood Identity Karren Baird-Olson
12. “Race,” “Ethnicity,” and “Culture” in Hawai’i: The Myth of the “Model Minority” State Laura Desfor Edles
13. Multiracial Identity in Global Perspective: The United States, Brazil, and South Africa G. Reginald Daniel
PART IV: RACE, GENDER & HIERARCHY  
14. Does Multiraciality Lighten? Me-too Ethnicity & the Whiteness Trap Paul Spickard
15. The Hazards of Visibility: “Biracial Women,” Media Images, and Narratives of Identity Caroline A. Streeter
16. Masculine Multiracial Comedians Darby Li Po Price
PART V: SPECIAL TOPICS  
17. Gang Affiliation & Self-Esteem: The Effects of a Mixed Heritage Identity Patricia O’Donnell Brummett & Loretta I. Winters
18. Black/White Interracial Couples & the Beliefs That Help Them to Bridge the Racial Divide Kristyan M. Kouri
Epilogue: The Multiracial Movement: Harmony & Discord Loretta I. Winters
Index  
About the Editors  
About the Contributors
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