“Choose One”
“Choose one.” I looked at the question with a scrunched up brow. Looking over the question constantly thinking of how I am going answer it. “Pick only one? “ I thought. I started scratching my head because of my indecisiveness and confusion. A question that most would not even take a half a second to answer; I have took minutes. I was not only one so I could not just pick one. This is not the first time my racial identity has created a bit of an obstacle for me. Even in 2016, where the the United States is known as the “Melting Pot”. Some make is seem like it is impossible that someone could be mixed with 2 or more races. People in the mixed community are often left out. This question makes me feel restricted and boxed in. As
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My father is African-American and my mother is white. I am mixed with two completely different races and it shows through my appearance. When someone sees me they always seemed shocked like it was rare to see a mixed person. Once they find out about me being mixed with more than one race, then there comes the bundle of questions that do not seem to ever end. I often get asked, “If you are half black why are you so pale?” or “Why is your hair like that?” or “ How did you get your hair like that?” I remember one time I was talking to a person about me being bi-racial. When I was done talking the person said, “Why don’t you just pick one?” I paused for a moment and had a lost for words. This question is still on my mind today. So many questions that I start to think I am being questioned by the police. Even when I answer the questions they still do not seem to understand. This is when I understood that people with one racial identity do not get what it is like to be mixed with more than one. It is like being mixed is a whole different kind of human. I often feel too “black” around white people, and too “white” around black people. I did not just fit into one category; I fit into