Talkin' Race

I surmise that by now we’ve all heard of Rachel Dolezal…the ex-NAACP leader from Spokane, Washington.  The white woman who ID’s herself as black.  Not exactly a ‘black’ name but then names are hardly the entire story.  Nothing like being outed by your white parents who happened to adopt four black kids.  Well….what did they think could happen?  It seems to me she just over-identified with her siblings.  And, so what???  A lot of worse things are happening in the world.

The sad thing is that she felt she had to be black to be part of the leadership in the NAACP.  And, maybe that’s the reality but I was pretty heartened to see their statement:

“For 106 years, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has held a long and proud tradition of receiving support from people of all faiths, races, colors and creeds.
'NAACP Spokane Washington Branch President Rachel Dolezal is enduring a legal issue with her family, and we respect her privacy in this matter. One's racial identity is not a qualifying criteria or disqualifying standard for NAACP leadership. The NAACP Alaska-Oregon-Washington State Conference stands behind Ms. Dolezal's advocacy record.
'In every corner of this country, the NAACP remains committed to securing political, educational, and economic justice for all people, and we encourage Americans of all stripes to become members and serve as leaders in our organization.”

I have to say I can relate to Rachel in some ways.  I’ve always had a propensity to root for the underdog, the disenfranchised, the lower rungs of the hierarchy.  I married out of my race and lived in neighborhoods and worked in schools where I was the token white person.  But, I will say I think it would be ridiculous for me with my green eyes and blonde now white hair to try to pass as black….traits Rachel shares.

And so the question now is integrity and honesty.  Really, Rachel, did you think you’d never be outed???!!  There’s absolutely nothing wrong with being white and fighting for justice for all people.

I remember when my two biracial children were very young and we’d ask them how they identified themselves.  My daughter with her light skin, pert nose and curly black hair always said ‘mixed.’  And, God knows, she is that…..African, Danish, Irish, German, English, Native American.  My son, on the other hand, saw himself as black.  “Why?” I asked.  “Look at me” was his response.  He was darker with tight curly hair but with a European nose….my grandmother’s contribution.  But, as an adult, with his full beard that his father would’ve died for and his black hair, he actually looks Middle Eastern.  And, now that they’re starting to have children, things get really interesting in terms of identification.

One of my close friends also has biracial granddaughters and she asked them about how they identify.  The younger one at age 11 sees herself as ‘mixed,’ while the 14 year old about to enter high school sees herself as black.  Why?  “Because black is cool,” she says.

Is that what Rachel Doleful was thinking?  “Black is cool”!?  God, I hope not.  But, she obviously thought she couldn't accomplish her goals, including being a professor of African Studies, without altering her racial identification.

And that is what our history has brought us.  An unhealthy emphasis on race and our ability or inability to transcend it.  I was raised in the South when Jim Crow laws ruled and now we elected a black President and our country is moving rapidly toward a majority minority.  In 1950, the US had a 10% minority population and now we are close to 40%.

With each succeeding generation, my hope is that the emphasis we place on race will lessen.  In my own family, I know it has.  My kids really didn’t get the significance of our country electing the first black president.  He was just another politician warts and all.  Their world solely isn’t black and white.  It’s far more nuanced than that.

Thank God!!!