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| More Americans will be multiracial. |
AMERICA'S FUTURE is going to be a lot more colorful, that's for sure.
More and more Americans are identifying themselves as multi-racial, according to a Pew Research Center report released on June 11. "Multiracial Americans are at the cutting edge of social and demographic change in the U.S.—young, proud, tolerant and growing at a rate three times as fast as the population as a whole," says the report.
Multi-racial Americans make up about 7 percent, or 9 million, of the total U.S. population. But with a tendency to marry other multiracial people, that group identity will certainly grow exponentially. In Hawaii, multiracial people make up 20 percent of the population.
Because of the many racial combinations, it is difficult to generalize about this group but the most striking thing that stood out in the report is how socially liberal they are, thus tend to lean Democrat politically. A large number identify as independents.
Those multiracial individuals who identify more white, along with those who see themselves as American Indian, tend to be more conservative. Those who identify with one of the other groups of color, were more liberal.
Among multiracial people, the largest group, 50 percent, are made up of the combination of white and American Indian.
White/Asian is at 4 percent but the demographic trend indicates this will change dramatically in the future. In 2013 majority of mixed-race babies were either biracial white and black (36 percent) or biracial white and Asian (24 percent). Only 11percent were white and American Indian.
If current trends continue—and evidence suggests they may accelerate—the Census Bureau projects that the U.S.'s multiracial population will triple by 2060. In other words, about 1 in 5 Americans will identify themselves as multiracial.
A festival celebrating being multiracial
The timing of the Pew center's report couldn't be more timely. On June 13, multiracial artists, writers, comedians, musicians, multiracial and multicultural families—are expected to gather at the Mixed Remixed Festival at the Japanese American National Museumin in Los Angeles, to celebrate the stories and lives of multiracial people and families.
Related: 'Hapa-palooza' Celebrates Canada's Mixed-Heritage Residents
"Our goal is to raise awareness that the mixed race experience is very much the American experience," Mixed Remixed Festival Founder and Executive Producer Heidi Durrow, told NBC News. "The festival isn't about mixed-race pride. It's about breaking the silences we have about the complexities of racial and cultural identity."
If pop culture is any indication about the future of our country, producers and marketers seem to be preferring racially ambiguous characters in its television commercials and magazine fashion ads.
In the entertainment industry, the abundance of multiracial entertainers abound: Beyonce, Hallie Barry, Norah Jones, Keanu Reeves, Enrique Iglesias, Sharon Leal, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and the list goes on and on. Lest we forget to mention: the current occupant of the White House is biracial.
The prominence of multiracial celebrities in our society makes it easier to have an environment of acceptance and tolerance towards people of different races. How could someone be bigoted against someone they may be related to? At least in these terms, the future looks brighter.
How will America react to this trend? That's the only negative possibility - acts of bigotry may actually rise as the last gasp of that group that has traditionally been in power, i.e. white males. In the 1950s, whites were 85 percent of the U.S. population. When conservatives talk about the "good old days," that is what they are talking about. When they say they want "to take America back," what they are saying is they don't want to share the abundance of this country.
As white people lose their power and dominance, certain elements may feel cornered and will do all they can - including inducing fear of the nonwhites - to maintain the status quo. Look how Obama's election brought the rise of repressed racism out into the open and into the courts and state legislatures and onto the streets.
We shouldn't be afraid of the future. Instead, as the races continue to blend and the American spirit is reinvigorated by immigrants eager to take advantage of the opportunities this country provides, the American dream will continue to act as a lure for the best, bravest, brightest and most ambitious people from throughout the world. As the immigrants who came before them, they will meet each other, fall in love and have multiracial babies.
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| Actress Sharon Leal is half-Filipina |
In the entertainment industry, the abundance of multiracial entertainers abound: Beyonce, Hallie Barry, Norah Jones, Keanu Reeves, Enrique Iglesias, Sharon Leal, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and the list goes on and on. Lest we forget to mention: the current occupant of the White House is biracial.
The prominence of multiracial celebrities in our society makes it easier to have an environment of acceptance and tolerance towards people of different races. How could someone be bigoted against someone they may be related to? At least in these terms, the future looks brighter.
How will America react to this trend? That's the only negative possibility - acts of bigotry may actually rise as the last gasp of that group that has traditionally been in power, i.e. white males. In the 1950s, whites were 85 percent of the U.S. population. When conservatives talk about the "good old days," that is what they are talking about. When they say they want "to take America back," what they are saying is they don't want to share the abundance of this country.
As white people lose their power and dominance, certain elements may feel cornered and will do all they can - including inducing fear of the nonwhites - to maintain the status quo. Look how Obama's election brought the rise of repressed racism out into the open and into the courts and state legislatures and onto the streets.
We shouldn't be afraid of the future. Instead, as the races continue to blend and the American spirit is reinvigorated by immigrants eager to take advantage of the opportunities this country provides, the American dream will continue to act as a lure for the best, bravest, brightest and most ambitious people from throughout the world. As the immigrants who came before them, they will meet each other, fall in love and have multiracial babies.
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