What was the most interesting thing you learned about the new face of race in America from this chapter? What insights does Chideya have from being a reporter? What questions does this chapter raise for you?
I think the most interesting thing Chideya talks about is the fact that when it comes to the discussion of race, we often see black and white. Many issues of race, races seen on television, etc. are almost always black and white. People of other races are continuing to grow rapidly in this country and, as Chideya points out, could soon be the majority. I liked the passage "Even though my interest in race comes directly out of my personal perspective....it serves us no better than it does whites to ignore the growth of other communities.
I think she can show many different sides of this "multicultural movement" in America. She is, herself, a biracial woman. This gives her a personal experience with what she is writing about, but she also can give an outside perspective about races different from her own.
I thought the section, "Majority-Minority" was interesting. Chideya discusses the fact that whites, as a majority, have been on the decline since the 1950's and in less than 50 years will be a "minority." I am also curious if you factored in mixed races and non-typical whites (ie. not from England, Ireland, or a Scandinavian country) what the percentage would be. Technically I am 'white,' but my niece -who is half black -is lighter than I am. (I check the "other" box on the racial category in protest that there is no "Italian-American" category).
I wonder if it is possible that "true whites" are already in the minority? And yet the majority of media, politics, and fortunate 500 CEOs are not just white, but 'true white.' Muy interesante...
The idea of the Millenium Generation is so interesting to me. As part of the Millenium Generation, I can say that my concepts of race are radically different than my parents' and not even comparable to my grandparents'. I've also seen evidence of this shift apart from my own experiences, especially within my sister's age group. It's nice to know that someone has named a new generation based on their openness and curiosity toward and about races other than their own.
I'm curious about how Asian-Americans feel they are portrayed in American society. I can't think, off the top of my head, of a television show or a national news broadcaster that is Asian-American. I also agree with Lee, where are all the white people and exactly who is white? The census statistics quoted in the book are from 97, but still, 73% of the population is "white"?
Ann Curry of NBC is Asian American to answer you query, Christy. I think Chideya writing is very interesting and thought provoking. I was really interested to read about her own race and ethnicity and how her experiences have shaped her thoughts on race. Like the others have commented I also thought that the percentages of white were interesting to think about and like Lee I too alway check other when filling out the race information- there is no box for French American. I can remember from childhood people talking about how one day white people would be in the minority. I think this is a concept that everyone in the Millennium Generation has grown up having some awareness about it. And like Christy said, this has shaped our thoughts and feelings on race in a much more open manner than our parents and definitely much different from our grandparents. I know, just like I do, you still have a grandparent that still says 'colored'.
When Chideya states, "Yet it is precisely the transformative power of youth that has shaped America throughout history," it really got me to think about how different life has been in just the last few hundred years. It has been the newest generations that have seen the most change for accepting different races and ethnicities. I find it interesting that the book refers to the Irish in Boston as being in a large state of poverty as well. My dad talked to me when I was younger about discrimination and how his high school would not accept a black student for who they were. My dad was the only one willing to stand up for what he believed and was friends with the black student. He told me when you come from a poor family of Irish coalminers, you understand that not everyone will have what the upper class families have, and we are no exception. We were a minority at one point, even though we were a white family.
Chideya has a very open point of view since she is multiracial and open to the multicultural topic. She gives all points of view, but she obviously has her own opinions on different topics.
My question would now be, what would Chideya's thoughts on the changing America be like today now that we do have a multiracial president?
I wonder how Lee would define "true white"? I'm guessing that he'd take the category of white/European American and subtract anyone Jewish, Greek, Italian. Anyone else? Eastern Europeans? I assume the idea is subtracting those from the more "ruling class" and "history of power and colonialism" nations or the people who have always been top dogs in the U.S. and never really a discriminated against minority.
I found Chideya's writing to be very interesting, to be able to see the progression of racial views through her experiences. She mentions that "mutlticulturalism has become the new evil 'ism' many Americans feel compelled to fight." This comment really made me think. Why are people afraid of this? I find it slightly ironic considering that from America's earliest beginnings we have been known as a cultural melting pot.
When I think about what Lee said, as far as being "true white", I'm reminded of a discussion in a diversity class I had at UGA. We talked about marking our races and ethnicities on forms and how inaccurate the categories are. How exactly do you define a race? Are Irish, German, and Italian different races? Would South African and Egyptian be different? Or are these simply different ethnic groups? If they are just ethnic groups, then would it not be the most accurate to claim one race... the human race?
fyi: Connie Chung is an Asian-American newscaster.
Like Chistine, I would love to see what the author has to say about racial issues currently in America. I think the fact that Obama is President right now only reaffirms everything that she is predicting in her book.
I thought the most interesting thing about the chapter was the fact that racial issues are usually just a black and white thing, and the other races aren't even talked about, even though they are affected by it just as much as everyone else. It is also interesting that these "other" races are competing and fighting with each other to survive in "white America", even though they will soon outnumber "whites".
I know that my thoughts on different cultures and races has changed a lot as I have grown up and been exposed to more groups of people. It is impossible to ignore the fact that whites are soon to be the minority, and I know that scares a lot of whites. It is strange that they are afraid of how life will change, that America will not be the same. Racism is still extremely prevalent today.
I agree with CJ when he stated the most interesting point he found was that race continues to be a black and white issue. It is interesting how some Americans use t.v. and other pop culture to tell them what the rest of society is like. This reminded me of the small town in Illinois where my parents grew up. Many of my cousins grew up and still live in this town that is predominantly white with a handful of Hispanics and African Americans that literally live on "the other side of the tracks." When we were younger I remember going to visit and how they would watch MTV to see what the latest styles were and how they listened to rap music, but yet had probably never spoken to a black person before in their life at that time. The area where I grew up was also predominantly white, but everyone seemed to be friends with the few minorities we had at our school... or at least this was my perspective being apart of the majority group.
Chideya is a biracial woman herself so that alone would help her being a reporter. She befriends people of all races and finds it interesting to get the "truth" in her writings. This means she is interested in what everyone has to say, not just a bias point of view of one race, gender, or age group.
When Katey wrote "I know that my thoughts on different cultures and races has changed a lot as I have grown up and been exposed to more groups of people. It is impossible to ignore the fact that whites are soon to be the minority," I know that my perspective changed from elementary to middle school. I was in a majority white school in elementary school with only a handful of black students, but when I reached middle school the entire dynamic changed. My best friend was a biracial student.
I wonder about how much will truly change. The majority of the upper-class citizens are historically white males. Once whites become the minority, will the upper-class change? It is typically those with money that control what happens in a country.
So far my biggest question: We hear Chideya talk about how this shift is occurring in race dynamics and that we traditionally see peoples of similar racial backgrounds seeking each other out and sticking together. As our society becomes less and less 'racially pure' how will this change who people gravitate toward. I am sure that as the lines of race become more distorted different groupings will naturally begin to occur, but like Christine I wonder how much things will truly change. And what determines how much of what a person is and more importantly is it really necessary to identify these differences any longer.
I was wondering the same thing that Claire was wondering. I feel like the whole dynamics of American makeup is changing, and that isn't a bad thing. Even though the look of things are changing, is how people see race and the American way of life changing too?
To answer Cynthia, I am not sure if there is such thing as "true white" and that is kind of my point. From most people's definition, the Irish are about as white as they come(physically), and yet they faced as much discrimination in their first generations here as any other "non-white" race. As recently as the great depression "Help Wanted: No Irish Need Apply" signs were posted. What about the Germans? Similar situation (especially during WWI and II) and they have been here practically as long as the English settlers!
Being white is as much a mental thing as a physical thing for me. As children become three and four generations away from living in their home country, I wonder if there is reason that some become more assimilated than others? Does it have to do strictly with the color of our skin or something else?
I feel like it goes much deeper than the physical. The Irish brought a new religion (Catholicism) and new accents/language and were discriminated for them. Similarly the Germans during the wars provided an excellent opportunity for the "us vs them" mentality which has always been both popular and prevalent in American culture. A fair skinned Russian/Swede/German/any other race will always struggle upon entering a new society as long as people are afraid of anyone different than them. Whether their skin is different may be somewhat important, but there are many other factors contributing to how successfully a race is assimilated into a new culture.
The Millennium Generation was also an interesting topic to me. This book is almost a decade old and so far everything seems to be right on track with what Chideya was thinking. I do feel like our generation is the first to be exposed to more mixed races and without as many prejudices that went on during and before the Civil Rights Movement. Sadly we would be naive to think that racism was obsolete, but I do believe much progress is being made on our country. I know my grandparents generation probably never dreamed that they would live to see a mixed race president, and now that that has been accomplished I'm sure other people of mixed races feel as though they really do belong... and rightly so.
Now I believe it's less of a race thing and more of a social class thing. It use to be that your social class was determined by your race, but ever since the civil rights era and even the feminism movement-people have pushed the idea that we are all equal in our abilities (except for maybe a lack of opportunities because of class-which is our next step) and we shouldn't be set apart because of skin color.
Several people have mentioned our biracial president ... I think that our country wanted to change the way we think of race so much (in a great way), by electing Obama, that they voted for him when in reality he shouldn't even have been allowed to be a canidate. I believe it's our constitution that states that the President of the United States must be a U.S. citizen and no one can find Obama's birth records at all. Isn't it interesting that we can not prove that our President is even a U.S. citizen? Obviously something happen to those records, but my point is that our country wanted change so much that it ignored the facts to make the change. Eventually, and I can't wait for this, but race won't be an issue. It's on the horizon.
Im not so sure that race will ever "stop being an issue". When the majority-minority flip happens that doesnt just erase race issues. Some group will always be the minority and the majority. This has always been an issue as far back as anyone can remember (much like Lee has pointed out). There has always been discrimination against people who are "different". I hope that one day it wont be an issue, Im just not sold on the fact that it ever will.
Two Asian, female national newscasters pales in comparison to the dozens of white female or white male newscasters on television every day. I can only think of 1 sitcom that featured an Asian family, Margaret Cho's "All American Girl", which was only on for 1 or 2 seasons. There are Asian characters sprinkled into television shows, but their numbers are quite small. I simply do not think that Asian-Americans are fairly represented in the media. Honestly, I don't think anyone is fairly represented in the media. I know I'm sure not!
Chideya's idea of race being connected to location made me stop and think about myself. What does it mean to be a white, Southern woman? Am I very different than a white, Midwestern woman or a white, Northeastern woman? I can undeniably say, Yes! This idea of race/location makes stereotypes either ridiculously specific or ridiculously general. The whole idea of stereotyping just seems silly because there is no way to know exactly how Hispanic people in Indiana behave contrasted to those in the South.
I think no matter how far we come from looking at race as simply a black and white issue, it will always remain an issue (as CJ mentioned). Not because people will never be able to look past other races, but because people will always use it as a way to identify themselves. All types of identification bring with them stereotypes and prejudices. So as long as people continue to categorize themselves in any way, there will be issues. Thus there will always be race issues. We just need to learn how to work with them as we do with other issues.
I think I was misunderstood. Of course we will always have race and people will always want to label themselves...I'm simply talking about looking back at how far we've come and knowing how far we have to go. People of different races have proven to the masses that the color of ones skin doesn't have to hold someone back. Skin doesn't have to determine someone's social class anymore. I think in our future there will be such a mixture of cultures and races that it wont be able to be an excuse anymore. That was my point.
My biggest question from the book is...Chideya being a biracial reporter-that obviously helps him identify with the his biracial interviewees...but what about the "white people" out there? Does anyone even care about their view on the changes anymore? Or is the fact that their voice has been the one heard for so long make people want to ignore them? Are they still considered one 'white' mass?
I agree with Christy about how unrepresented almost all races but white are in our media. The media plays a huge role in how we see other cultures and races. I liked that Chideya brought up the fact that most African Americans and Latinos are in the news for crime related stories. Also, people that are in their late teens and twenties are extremely unrepresented in the news for doing good things as well. This affects how young people and other races are seen and stereotyped.
I think the most interesting thing Chideya talks about is the fact that when it comes to the discussion of race, we often see black and white. Many issues of race, races seen on television, etc. are almost always black and white. People of other races are continuing to grow rapidly in this country and, as Chideya points out, could soon be the majority. I liked the passage "Even though my interest in race comes directly out of my personal perspective....it serves us no better than it does whites to ignore the growth of other communities.
ReplyDeleteI think she can show many different sides of this "multicultural movement" in America. She is, herself, a biracial woman. This gives her a personal experience with what she is writing about, but she also can give an outside perspective about races different from her own.
I thought the section, "Majority-Minority" was interesting. Chideya discusses the fact that whites, as a majority, have been on the decline since the 1950's and in less than 50 years will be a "minority." I am also curious if you factored in mixed races and non-typical whites (ie. not from England, Ireland, or a Scandinavian country) what the percentage would be. Technically I am 'white,' but my niece -who is half black -is lighter than I am. (I check the "other" box on the racial category in protest that there is no "Italian-American" category).
ReplyDeleteI wonder if it is possible that "true whites" are already in the minority? And yet the majority of media, politics, and fortunate 500 CEOs are not just white, but 'true white.' Muy interesante...
The idea of the Millenium Generation is so interesting to me. As part of the Millenium Generation, I can say that my concepts of race are radically different than my parents' and not even comparable to my grandparents'. I've also seen evidence of this shift apart from my own experiences, especially within my sister's age group. It's nice to know that someone has named a new generation based on their openness and curiosity toward and about races other than their own.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious about how Asian-Americans feel they are portrayed in American society. I can't think, off the top of my head, of a television show or a national news broadcaster that is Asian-American. I also agree with Lee, where are all the white people and exactly who is white? The census statistics quoted in the book are from 97, but still, 73% of the population is "white"?
Ann Curry of NBC is Asian American to answer you query, Christy.
ReplyDeleteI think Chideya writing is very interesting and thought provoking. I was really interested to read about her own race and ethnicity and how her experiences have shaped her thoughts on race. Like the others have commented I also thought that the percentages of white were interesting to think about and like Lee I too alway check other when filling out the race information- there is no box for French American.
I can remember from childhood people talking about how one day white people would be in the minority. I think this is a concept that everyone in the Millennium Generation has grown up having some awareness about it. And like Christy said, this has shaped our thoughts and feelings on race in a much more open manner than our parents and definitely much different from our grandparents. I know, just like I do, you still have a grandparent that still says 'colored'.
When Chideya states, "Yet it is precisely the transformative power of youth that has shaped America throughout history," it really got me to think about how different life has been in just the last few hundred years. It has been the newest generations that have seen the most change for accepting different races and ethnicities. I find it interesting that the book refers to the Irish in Boston as being in a large state of poverty as well. My dad talked to me when I was younger about discrimination and how his high school would not accept a black student for who they were. My dad was the only one willing to stand up for what he believed and was friends with the black student. He told me when you come from a poor family of Irish coalminers, you understand that not everyone will have what the upper class families have, and we are no exception. We were a minority at one point, even though we were a white family.
ReplyDeleteChideya has a very open point of view since she is multiracial and open to the multicultural topic. She gives all points of view, but she obviously has her own opinions on different topics.
My question would now be, what would Chideya's thoughts on the changing America be like today now that we do have a multiracial president?
I wonder how Lee would define "true white"? I'm guessing that he'd take the category of white/European American and subtract anyone Jewish, Greek, Italian. Anyone else? Eastern Europeans? I assume the idea is subtracting those from the more "ruling class" and "history of power and colonialism" nations or the people who have always been top dogs in the U.S. and never really a discriminated against minority.
ReplyDeleteI found Chideya's writing to be very interesting, to be able to see the progression of racial views through her experiences. She mentions that "mutlticulturalism has become the new evil 'ism' many Americans feel compelled to fight." This comment really made me think. Why are people afraid of this? I find it slightly ironic considering that from America's earliest beginnings we have been known as a cultural melting pot.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think about what Lee said, as far as being "true white", I'm reminded of a discussion in a diversity class I had at UGA. We talked about marking our races and ethnicities on forms and how inaccurate the categories are. How exactly do you define a race? Are Irish, German, and Italian different races? Would South African and Egyptian be different? Or are these simply different ethnic groups? If they are just ethnic groups, then would it not be the most accurate to claim one race... the human race?
fyi: Connie Chung is an Asian-American newscaster.
ReplyDeleteLike Chistine, I would love to see what the author has to say about racial issues currently in America. I think the fact that Obama is President right now only reaffirms everything that she is predicting in her book.
I thought the most interesting thing about the chapter was the fact that racial issues are usually just a black and white thing, and the other races aren't even talked about, even though they are affected by it just as much as everyone else. It is also interesting that these "other" races are competing and fighting with each other to survive in "white America", even though they will soon outnumber "whites".
I know that my thoughts on different cultures and races has changed a lot as I have grown up and been exposed to more groups of people. It is impossible to ignore the fact that whites are soon to be the minority, and I know that scares a lot of whites. It is strange that they are afraid of how life will change, that America will not be the same. Racism is still extremely prevalent today.
I agree with CJ when he stated the most interesting point he found was that race continues to be a black and white issue. It is interesting how some Americans use t.v. and other pop culture to tell them what the rest of society is like. This reminded me of the small town in Illinois where my parents grew up. Many of my cousins grew up and still live in this town that is predominantly white with a handful of Hispanics and African Americans that literally live on "the other side of the tracks." When we were younger I remember going to visit and how they would watch MTV to see what the latest styles were and how they listened to rap music, but yet had probably never spoken to a black person before in their life at that time. The area where I grew up was also predominantly white, but everyone seemed to be friends with the few minorities we had at our school... or at least this was my perspective being apart of the majority group.
ReplyDeleteChideya is a biracial woman herself so that alone would help her being a reporter. She befriends people of all races and finds it interesting to get the "truth" in her writings. This means she is interested in what everyone has to say, not just a bias point of view of one race, gender, or age group.
When Katey wrote "I know that my thoughts on different cultures and races has changed a lot as I have grown up and been exposed to more groups of people. It is impossible to ignore the fact that whites are soon to be the minority," I know that my perspective changed from elementary to middle school. I was in a majority white school in elementary school with only a handful of black students, but when I reached middle school the entire dynamic changed. My best friend was a biracial student.
ReplyDeleteI wonder about how much will truly change. The majority of the upper-class citizens are historically white males. Once whites become the minority, will the upper-class change? It is typically those with money that control what happens in a country.
So far my biggest question: We hear Chideya talk about how this shift is occurring in race dynamics and that we traditionally see peoples of similar racial backgrounds seeking each other out and sticking together. As our society becomes less and less 'racially pure' how will this change who people gravitate toward. I am sure that as the lines of race become more distorted different groupings will naturally begin to occur, but like Christine I wonder how much things will truly change. And what determines how much of what a person is and more importantly is it really necessary to identify these differences any longer.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering the same thing that Claire was wondering. I feel like the whole dynamics of American makeup is changing, and that isn't a bad thing. Even though the look of things are changing, is how people see race and the American way of life changing too?
ReplyDeleteTo answer Cynthia, I am not sure if there is such thing as "true white" and that is kind of my point. From most people's definition, the Irish are about as white as they come(physically), and yet they faced as much discrimination in their first generations here as any other "non-white" race. As recently as the great depression "Help Wanted: No Irish Need Apply" signs were posted. What about the Germans? Similar situation (especially during WWI and II) and they have been here practically as long as the English settlers!
ReplyDeleteBeing white is as much a mental thing as a physical thing for me. As children become three and four generations away from living in their home country, I wonder if there is reason that some become more assimilated than others? Does it have to do strictly with the color of our skin or something else?
I feel like it goes much deeper than the physical. The Irish brought a new religion (Catholicism) and new accents/language and were discriminated for them. Similarly the Germans during the wars provided an excellent opportunity for the "us vs them" mentality which has always been both popular and prevalent in American culture. A fair skinned Russian/Swede/German/any other race will always struggle upon entering a new society as long as people are afraid of anyone different than them. Whether their skin is different may be somewhat important, but there are many other factors contributing to how successfully a race is assimilated into a new culture.
The Millennium Generation was also an interesting topic to me. This book is almost a decade old and so far everything seems to be right on track with what Chideya was thinking. I do feel like our generation is the first to be exposed to more mixed races and without as many prejudices that went on during and before the Civil Rights Movement. Sadly we would be naive to think that racism was obsolete, but I do believe much progress is being made on our country. I know my grandparents generation probably never dreamed that they would live to see a mixed race president, and now that that has been accomplished I'm sure other people of mixed races feel as though they really do belong... and rightly so.
ReplyDeleteNow I believe it's less of a race thing and more of a social class thing. It use to be that your social class was determined by your race, but ever since the civil rights era and even the feminism movement-people have pushed the idea that we are all equal in our abilities (except for maybe a lack of opportunities because of class-which is our next step) and we shouldn't be set apart because of skin color.
ReplyDeleteSeveral people have mentioned our biracial president ... I think that our country wanted to change the way we think of race so much (in a great way), by electing Obama, that they voted for him when in reality he shouldn't even have been allowed to be a canidate. I believe it's our constitution that states that the President of the United States must be a U.S. citizen and no one can find Obama's birth records at all. Isn't it interesting that we can not prove that our President is even a U.S. citizen? Obviously something happen to those records, but my point is that our country wanted change so much that it ignored the facts to make the change. Eventually, and I can't wait for this, but race won't be an issue. It's on the horizon.
Im not so sure that race will ever "stop being an issue". When the majority-minority flip happens that doesnt just erase race issues. Some group will always be the minority and the majority. This has always been an issue as far back as anyone can remember (much like Lee has pointed out). There has always been discrimination against people who are "different". I hope that one day it wont be an issue, Im just not sold on the fact that it ever will.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTwo Asian, female national newscasters pales in comparison to the dozens of white female or white male newscasters on television every day. I can only think of 1 sitcom that featured an Asian family, Margaret Cho's "All American Girl", which was only on for 1 or 2 seasons. There are Asian characters sprinkled into television shows, but their numbers are quite small. I simply do not think that Asian-Americans are fairly represented in the media. Honestly, I don't think anyone is fairly represented in the media. I know I'm sure not!
ReplyDeleteChideya's idea of race being connected to location made me stop and think about myself. What does it mean to be a white, Southern woman? Am I very different than a white, Midwestern woman or a white, Northeastern woman? I can undeniably say, Yes! This idea of race/location makes stereotypes either ridiculously specific or ridiculously general. The whole idea of stereotyping just seems silly because there is no way to know exactly how Hispanic people in Indiana behave contrasted to those in the South.
I think no matter how far we come from looking at race as simply a black and white issue, it will always remain an issue (as CJ mentioned). Not because people will never be able to look past other races, but because people will always use it as a way to identify themselves. All types of identification bring with them stereotypes and prejudices. So as long as people continue to categorize themselves in any way, there will be issues. Thus there will always be race issues. We just need to learn how to work with them as we do with other issues.
ReplyDeleteI think I was misunderstood. Of course we will always have race and people will always want to label themselves...I'm simply talking about looking back at how far we've come and knowing how far we have to go. People of different races have proven to the masses that the color of ones skin doesn't have to hold someone back. Skin doesn't have to determine someone's social class anymore. I think in our future there will be such a mixture of cultures and races that it wont be able to be an excuse anymore. That was my point.
ReplyDeleteMy biggest question from the book is...Chideya being a biracial reporter-that obviously helps him identify with the his biracial interviewees...but what about the "white people" out there? Does anyone even care about their view on the changes anymore? Or is the fact that their voice has been the one heard for so long make people want to ignore them? Are they still considered one 'white' mass?
I agree with Christy about how unrepresented almost all races but white are in our media. The media plays a huge role in how we see other cultures and races. I liked that Chideya brought up the fact that most African Americans and Latinos are in the news for crime related stories. Also, people that are in their late teens and twenties are extremely unrepresented in the news for doing good things as well. This affects how young people and other races are seen and stereotyped.
ReplyDelete