Being Biracial in a White America

BTSU 201

You know my whole life I always dealt with the struggles of having to pick sides. I never got to just be Lauren Carey. I always had to be Black or White cause I couldn’t be both. Race in America is a social construct that we put so much emphasize on. If I put on an application that Identify as White and I go to the interview I will never be more black. If put on an application that I identify as Black than I statistically will be less likely to get the interview and statistically less likely to get the job. I have to spend extra time proving that I possess Michelle Obama or Oprah qualities for them to even listen to me. If I put on an application that I am Biracial there is often not an option for that, so I have to put "other" further ostracizing me from society. Why do we emphasize race so much? Why is it unheard of for a light skin black woman to have white blood? Why is it that when my mom had two young children (me and my brother) she was always asked Are you the nanny?} Why can’t I just be pretty why am I pretty for a black girl? Why is it that most times when I go out to eat with my biological father the waiter always confuses us as a couple instead father and daughter? Why do people always ask, "What are you" trying to figure out my ethnicity but don’t even care to ask for my name first"? That is my intro and I plan to expand on those issues I stated above by utilizing a powerpoint, stories, and sociology theories such as the double consciousness theory by W.E.B. Du Bois to back up my claims.