33 Struggles Only Mixed Race People Will Understand

By Guilo  •  09 Mar 2018 in Features

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Images Giphy + 9Hive

There’s nothing wrong with being mixed race, until you encounter the problems that come with it. Here are some of the most common struggles by a rojak kid you can probably resonate with if you belong in the same category.

1. Annoyance, when your first conversation with anyone is most likely going to be about your race.

2. Tired when having to explain what your mix is and having to justify it.

3. Excitement, when you get to travel to another part of the world to visit your relatives.

4. Confusion, when someone says they want to marry within their race.

5. Annoyance, racism of any kind.

6. You often run into the problem of people speaking to you in the foreign language you look like you speak.

7. You get lectured when you can’t speak a language your parents speak.

8. The struggle of having to fully assume one racial identity when necessary, until its more convenient to claim the other half.

9. The stress of having to know the traditions of multiple cultures.

10. Unamused, when everyone’s favourite game seems to be “Guess Your Ethnicity”.

11. Disbelief, when someone treats you like you’re not you’re not really [insert race] enough.

12. Ambivalence, about the term “halfie” or “celup”.

13. Awe, when you realize the incredible stories and rich histories that led to your existence.

14. Exhaustion, when people assume your ethnic make up.

15. Certainty, that in a hundred years most of us will be “mixed” anyway.

16. Having to accept the fact that your kid is going to be pretty racial ambiguous and you often wonder what they’ll look like.

17. Sometimes people think you’re adopted or that your father has a very young girlfriend. *facepalm

18. You and your siblings don’t always agree on which race you identify with more.

19. New friends and coworkers often see you as a novelty.

20. Having to fill out government forms that require you to check one single box for your race is gives you a mini identity crisis.

21. Your two sets of grandparents are so drastically different they have nothing to say to each other, or more often than not, are literally unable to say anything to each other.

22. In high school, you probably went through a serious racial identity crisis.

23. Sometimes you look at your parents, and then you look and yourself, and you just don’t see the similarities.

24. You’re tired of hearing “but your brother/sister looks so much more [insert race] than you!”

25. Or hearing “you don’t look anything like your brother/sister”

26. Desperately wanting to sing the “We Are Family” song upon meeting another person who is exactly your mix.

27. Having twice as many family events to go to because you celebrate the holidays of both cultures.

28. Having a laundry list of mixes you could say you are and nobody can fact check you.

29. People get really confused by your family name when it doesn’t quite seem to match your accent.

30. When no one can identify your accent

31. When someone who doesn’t know your race make a racial joke, then immediately looks to you to verify if you’re offended or not.

32. Low key feeling like an outsider at times.

33. Always hearing “OMG, mixed babies are so cute!”

 

 Got any unique struggles yourself? Share with us in the comments below!