Mixed race and mixed up


Anvar Khan writes in the Sunday Herald: (paraphrased, because I struggle to understand exactly what she means)

We are now the fastest growing minority in the US and UK.  Yet we have only just been recognized in the census.  We are stereotyped as caught between 2 cultures, doomed to rejection by both.  Or as genetically superior.  We wish only to be ourselves.  We suffer racial envy: we wish we could say, "I'm mixed race, and proud" but we can't, nor do we wish to give up one side.  So we negotiate our own identity, and in doing so we reveal the nonsense of racial identity.  There is no such thing as a virginity of racial experience.
Multiculturalism is a bloated corpse.  It is the beloved soundbite of those who make it their business to advise on what is racist and what isn't.  Do they mean multiracial?  So say so.  Multiculturalism is a patronizing term indicating a reluctant tolerance of Britain's racial mix. 
The term to use is "British".  There is such a thing as shared cultural experience, which is why mixed-race relationships between 2nd/3rd generation immigrants work. 
Political correctness has achieved nothing – instead of protecting ethnic minorities, it can promote discrimination by forcing people into a racial box eg refusing to foster/adopt across racial lines. 
But it's already changing.  The look in global fashion and branding is multiracial.  My colour is no longer political dynamite, it is just another marketing tool.  The future is various shades of brown.

I kind of agree with what she is saying.  But surely if you mean to emphasize the difference between colour and culture, then multiculturalism is exactly the term to use?  And I'm really unsure about the British identity thing (the idea of a Britain Day has just been floated by the government).  I still challenge anyone to tell me what a British identity is.  Especially for someone living in Scotland.

I grew up in London.  My cultural references are: Action Man.  Cola cubes.  Bagpuss.  Famous Five.  Lord of the Rings.  Dungeons and Dragons.  Raleigh bikes.  Public (ie private) school, including shorts, rugby, Christianity, rugged individualism, classical music.  Socialism.  Real ale.  Ordnance survey maps and rambling.  Terraced houses.  Bad food.  Colonial legacy.  Dull drizzly weather.  The sea.  Beach holidays in the Med.  Bad dancing. 

I would (and have) quite gladly drop a lot of those and replace them with, say, Japanese animation, European cinema,
adventure sports, great food, coffee, salsa dancing, passionate affairs, poetry.  Does that make me disloyal?  Do I care?


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *