Multiracial Parents: Mixed Families, Generational Change, and the Future of Race

216 Pages·2017·3.18 MB·English

by  Miri Song

Multiracial Parents

Multiracial Parents
Mixed Families, Generational Change,
and the Future of Race
Miri Song
NEW Y ORK UNIVERS ITY P RESS
New York
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York
www.nyupress.org
© 2017 by New York University
All rights reserved
References to Internet websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the
author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or
changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Song, Miri, 1964– author.
Title: Multiracial parents : mixed families, generational change, and the future of race /
Miri Song.
Description: New York : New York University, [2017] | Includes bibliographical references
and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017003867 | ISBN 9781479840540 (cl : alk. paper) |
ISBN 9781479825905 (pb : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Racially mixed families. | Parenting. | Race—Social aspects.
Classification: LCC HQ1031 .S66 2017 | DDC 306.85/05—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017003867
New York University Press books are printed on acid- free paper, and their binding materials
are chosen for strength and durability. We strive to use environmentally responsible suppli-
ers and materials to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books.
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Also available as an ebook
For Charlie Alexander Song- Smith and
Theo Myung- Do Song- Smith

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: Mixed People and “Mixing” in Today’s Britain 1
1. Multiracial People as Parents 19
2. How Do Multiracial People Identify Their Children? 37
3. The Parenting Practices of Multiracial People 64
4. Multiracial People, Their Children, and Racism 93
5. The Future: “Dilution” and Social Change 122
Conclusion: A Generational Tipping Point 151
Appendix: Participants 167
Notes 173
References 185
Index 197
About the Author 203
vii

Acknowledgments
Of the books I have written thus far, I have most enjoyed writing this
one. Having followed the work of many scholars of race and of multira-
cial people, I was very excited when I realized that there were no books
that focused specifically on multiracial people who were parents. After
working on the topic of “mixed- race” people for some years now, I had
begun to feel that I had exhausted my interest in this area. But of course,
I was wrong, as I became increasingly interested in generational change,
and how “multigeneration” multiracial people would think about their
ethnic and racial ancestries. Such questions are before me in my daily
life, as I have watched my sons, Charlie and Theo, grow up.
I would like to thank the generosity of the Leverhulme Trust, which
funded this research and enabled me to buy myself out of much of my
teaching for several years. Like others who do qualitative research, I sim-
ply would not have been able to proceed without such a grant. In the
course of my research, I was able to hear the stories of an amazing array
of participants, who illustrated perfectly just how heterogeneous the ru-
bric “multiracial” is. To these participants, who generously shared their
time, feelings, and stories with me, I am extremely grateful. I would also
like to thank the schools that granted me access to their parents. Thanks
go to my research associate for the Leverhulme project, Caitlin Gutierrez
O’Neill, who carried out some of the interviews, and who was integral
to the analysis of the interview data. Working with Ilene Kalish at New
York University Press has been a pleasure, and I thank her for her inter-
est and professionalism.
A number of scholars in the United States showed interest, enthu-
siasm, and support for this research. Thanks to Jenifer Bratter, whose
article actually inspired the idea for my broader, qualitative study in
ix