The Race Card Project
By Michele Norris
Zan Koh,
Singapore.
I’m not certain if I’m Japanese or Mediterranean, considering the fact that my Family`s tree on both sides are as mixed and a little dodgy on some instances; but still whilst I pass for, most of time at least- Japanese- its always fascinating to know what has led up to You and where you are.
Reigna,
Detroit, MI.
All families have all types of fruit in their bowl and their family tree grows whats in your fruit bowl.
Isabella Evans,
Seaford, VA
Growing up I did not know much about my family tree. I only knew a select amount of my family. Digging further, I found out I have a Iranian great uncle on my mothers side and two half Iranian second cousins. On my fathers side, I have a German grandmother and a German great grandmother who are still around. Knowing I have different races in my family tree has told me so much about my family history and encouraged me to learn more about their past and experiences.
Hillora Lang,
Burgaw, NC.
As a person with Asperger Syndrome I have always felt estranged from the human race. In high school I began working on my family tree, and it really helped to ground me and allow me to feel a connection to past generations. When doing genealogy research last year I discovered a great website called Geni.com, which is building a world family tree. I began searching for random historical figures to see if I was related. As time went on, I began entering the names of people I heard news stories about each day on NPR; beyond the Scottish, Irish, Welsh, English, French, Italian, Nordic, and Spanish relations which I’ve discovered, I found connections not only to Caucasian ancestors, but also to African-Americans such as poet Langston Hughes, President Obama and Michele Obama, and am hoping to find many more ancestors of all races. I have always been proud of my family’s diversity; my adopted cousin is of mixed race and her husband was African-American, I have other family members who are Native American, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Egyptian, Greek, and Taiwanese, and look forward to enlarging my family tree with each succeeding generation. It seems that I am related to just about everyone so I gladly claim, “Yes, you are all my family!”
James Edward Harrah,
Boonsboro, MD.
My Father passed long before I grew interested in our family history. Upon the birth of my son, this was the response from an Aunt when I began tracing my family tree. It’s interesting how something most likely out of convenience and considered scandalous over 130 years ago, represents so much more today.
Jamie Lee Myers
Jacksonville, FL
Many people seem to identify who they are by their race. We also all seem to have a tendency toward making assumptions based on how people look. I am fair with naturally red hair that is currently blonde. Most think I am Irish and that is in my family tree, but I am so mixed that its confusing. People tell me ‘just act white’ but is that who I am? does that define me because that is how I look. Can’t I pick up other traits or behave in ways characterized by other portions of my ethnicity? My great grand father was black (though family classify him as Cuban), another great grandfather was of the Erie tribe (according to family lore) and lot of other nationalities are mixed in. How can I decide who I am? What identifies me?
Kelly M.,
Indonesia.
My six words were spoken by my daughter when she was seven years old. I am From Texas, my family tree consists of Irish and English immigrants and Cherokee Native Americans. We generally look Caucasian, but all five siblings have slightly different skintones. I now live in Indonesia, I’m a single Mom with an older daughter who’s father is Turkish-Italian-American, she has lovely olive skin, and I have one daughter from Southern India , she has lovely dark chocolate skin. Many years ago, I came across this great set of coloured pencils, made by a German company called Lyra. They make a box of coloured pencils that are all in different skin tones. When my kids were small and had friends over, we used to sit around drawing and I would pass around the box and the kids would try to find the pencil that matched their skin tone. So, one day, when my youngest daughter was confronted by a little boy taunting her, who told her she was black, she simply said, “I’m not black, I’m dark brown” . What he meant as an insult, she thought of as a colour. She was only seven and at the time, I thought, thank goodness she doesnt know what he means. Maybe I’m a dreamer, but I hope my children always think of them selves as just another one of the many colors in the box.
Valerie Bell
Edison, NJ
I read a very old will on ancestry.com. Strongly hints that I have black cousins. Part of me feels very happy…I’d love to hug them. Part of me feels very guilty that the probable descendents of the same man got very different deals in life.
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