Northern Irish | Guyanese
I would describe myself as mixed-race and always have. My mum is from Georgetown, Guyana. My dad is from Belfast, Northern Ireland. I think there are definitely still biases and stereotypes about mixed-race people, however I feel what’s more pervasive is a general lack of understanding about mixed-race identity and experiences. I still think many people try to reduce the mixed-race identity in some way, either by saying that our heritage is somehow diluted or that we’re really more one race than another. I think that these binary thought processes occur because it forces people to question their own biases and racial prejudices and often disproves them. I have had many positive experiences of being mixed-raced. I have been embraced by people from a variety of backgrounds very easily. I feel my mixed racial identity makes me approachable to people who have limited experiences with people from other races, or for people who don’t adhere to the stereotypes of their own race. The negative experiences primarily revolved being in awkward situations or as the recipient of racist attitudes. I have been told to pick a side (Black or White), been at the center of a debate between my classmates as to whether I was Black or White, been accused of shoplifting, been asked if I speak another language (in a way that made me feel foreign). If I was to be born again I can’t imagine returning in any other way. I think it’s a blessing to be the person you are, and my mixed-race identity cannot be separated from the other expects of who I am as a person. To return in any other way would be to not return at all. I think the future of mixed-race is the greater identification of people as mixed-race. I think there are an increasing number of people who aren’t afraid of denying or hiding their heritage to fit into a box. I also think there are more people who want to be honest about their heritage and want the wholeness of their existence to be public knowledge. I think the future of mixed-race is similar to the future of other aspects of personal identity, namely, openness, self-awareness and acceptance.
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