General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsTransgender vs. Transracial
Why is there acceptance of Caitlyn Jenner as Transgender, but not acceptance of Rachel Dolezal as Transracial?
This is a serious question. If we can self-identify our gender, can we not self-identify our race?
And before the knives come out (and I'm sure they will), I know that many people already self-identify their race, and its accepted. For instance, many bi-racial people either self identify as white or African American.
This is a serious question and i'm interested in a serious discussion without any rock throwing.
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CJCRANE
(18,184 posts)joeybee12
(56,177 posts)Amazing that most people here aren't grasping that.
Cooley Hurd
(26,877 posts)One's identity cannot be defined by the bystander; it should always be defined by the subject themselves. And, the bystander should accept it.
philosslayer
(3,076 posts)I was almost afraid to pose the question, and I appreciate that I'm not the only one that has honest questions about the subject.
Cooley Hurd
(26,877 posts)...African-American. Amount of calories expended by doing so on my part?
0. Even it if took ten-thousand calories? Still VERY willing to defend this brave soul.
End of story and I'm proud of her for taking on the cause of inequality. 
Yupster
(14,308 posts)Is that acceptable?
What if Mitt Romney submits a bid for a government contract as a minority owned business?
Is her's accepted because she acted A-A for some approved amount of time while he didn't?
yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)then yes she should get what her race entitles her. She 100 percent feels she is African American. I don't see a difference with her and a transexual who feels they are living inside the wrong body. Equality is 100 percent regardless of others opinion. I am just surprised that some are not accepting her. We are liberals and not everything fits into a little box. Sorry but that is life. We all need to be progressive and except others differences.
JaneyVee
(19,877 posts)Bonx
(2,353 posts)
JI7
(93,561 posts)Jenner didn't actually try to deny her life and family.
philosslayer
(3,076 posts)She self identified as African-American. So what would she have been lying about? Lets put it another way. Lets say a transgender woman is applying at college. And she checks the "female" box on the application. Is she lying? No, she's a female. Conversely, if Mrs. Dolezal checks off that she is African-American, is she lying? What is the difference?
cwydro
(51,308 posts)in regard to hate crimes against her.
She is bullshit.
Cooley Hurd
(26,877 posts)Please post links.
Brickbat
(19,339 posts)marshall
(6,706 posts)it is not far fetched to consider that she has received mistreatment, abuse, and even threats because of that.
JI7
(93,561 posts)And some other things.
Cali_Democrat
(30,439 posts)
dlwickham
(3,316 posts)this thread is going to get good!
blm
(114,646 posts)Drove my Slovenian mother crazy when I would say so casually.
Most Americans' roots do track back to African continent - it shouldn't be a big deal for anyone to say so. imho, she should be allowed to identify with any of the various roots in her background - it's her comfort, not anyone else's.
whathehell
(30,458 posts)not just Americans.
blm
(114,646 posts)and enjoy the reality.
whathehell
(30,458 posts)Whatever. 
blm
(114,646 posts)Appreciate and enjoy the reality.
Sorry if I didn't make that clear.
whathehell
(30,458 posts)and I appreciate your clarification.
Yupster
(14,308 posts)trace our roots back to Africa and not that long ago either.
Amazing to think that if modern humans have been around for 100 - 200 thousand years, the America's were empty of any humans for 80-90 % of that time. According to buffalo and mammoths, thems were the good old days.
NuclearDem
(16,184 posts)BlueEye
(449 posts)
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)Devesonian. Native africans have no neanderthal or devesonian. Austrslian aboriginals have 6% devesonian!
Glassunion
(10,201 posts)I feel I'm indeed part Neanderthal. My wife agrees. However I identify as Homo Sapiens Sapiens.
Yupster
(14,308 posts)Africa right?
Pooka Fey
(3,496 posts)Berbers pre-date the Arabs that moved into the region afterwards. Berbers can be fair, blond and blue-eyed.
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blm
(114,646 posts)My father is fair and blue-eyed, like his parents, while his grandmother had dark eyes and dark hair. I favored his grandmother, while a few siblings favored my father.
Pooka Fey
(3,496 posts)It's an interesting topic. Much too complicated for the average American, and I have trouble keeping it straight. "Moors" can have blue eyes - there are descriptions as such in Renaissance era songs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors
These people were in North Africa during the Roman era. I've met some Kabyle (Berbers) in France, they are not Arabs and do NOT appreciate being confused with Arabs, as the Arab people conquered their territory. They can be Christian, though most are Muslim. The Jewish Kabyle have mostly emigrated to France or to Israel. It is a very complicated subject.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berbers
HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)IF they are DINOs, is she BINO?
LeftyMom
(49,212 posts)All babies start out with female traits. Triggers we don't entirely understand cause development of genitalia to diverge. A measurable percentage of people's genitals develop in a way that visibly diverges from the gender binary. It stands to reason that, assuming there are sex-based differences in brains, which is admittedly a matter of debate- some brains zig when the genitals zag.
There is no analogous reason to expect that some people will develop to look like children of the corn externally but identify as people of color.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)Have a seat here on the sofa.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)
This might get very interesting.
cali
(114,904 posts)bravenak
(34,648 posts)alcibiades_mystery
(36,437 posts) 
m-lekktor
(3,675 posts)this has been a hot topic all day! one of them posted "I think I want to be a white guy."
bravenak
(34,648 posts)m-lekktor
(3,675 posts)and the very first tweet mentioned is the first sentence of the OP!! :
"Rachel Dolezal was recently “outed” as a caucasian, and the internet has pretty much exploded. Dolezal is the President of the Spokane NAACP chapter, and as it turns out, has been “disguising” herself as an African American woman for years.
Many of Dolezal’s family members, including her own mother, have come forward to say that their daughter was very much born caucasian:
“Her effectiveness in the causes of the African-American community would have been so much more viable, and she would have been more effective if she had just been honest with everybody,” Ruthanne Dolezal said.
Dolezal’s parents aren’t the only ones with thoughts, however. The hashtag #Transracial has started trending on Twitter, and boy do people have a lot of feelings about this."
http://thoughtcatalog.com/jacob-geers/2015/06/a-roundup-of-the-most-ridiculous-transracial-tweets-about-rachel-dolezal/
bravenak
(34,648 posts)
JustAnotherGen
(38,037 posts)The Boondocks episode where Ruckus gives us his life story and background. Know which one I'm talking about? 
bravenak
(34,648 posts)
JustAnotherGen
(38,037 posts)I would probably get a hide for thread derailment even though it's relevant! 
Brickbat
(19,339 posts)I think a lot of concern comes from the comments she's made about her parents, her family, race-based threats she says she's received, and so on. I think she's profoundly disturbed and for whatever reason it's coming out in a racial way.
Chan790
(20,176 posts)Think of it as three parallel continua. None of sex, gender or orientation are either/or for the most part.
<<------Sex------>> (Male on one end. Female on the other. Intersex people in the middle along the continuum. People who identify as sexless/neuter being tangent to the continuum.)
<<------Gender------>> (Masculine on one end. Feminine on the other. Gender-nonconforming and a lot of queer people in the middle along the continuum. Agendered people being tangent to the continuum. People whose gender conforms to their sex are "cisgendered"
<<------Orientation------>> (Heterosexual on one end. Homosexual on the other. A variety of sexual-orientations for people in the middle along the continuum. Asexual people being tangent to the continuum.)
Gender is largely about conforming with social-identifiers of one's sex (sex is biological). One (me) can be straight(or straight-ish), biologically-male and bear a gender-identity that does not conform with one's sex and/or orientation. In my case, I don't identify as being of any specific gender and my gender-identity is variable from one day to the next.
It's a lot more complex than that but that's the 4-paragraph summary.
ismnotwasm
(42,674 posts)Nonetheless, there is a history of racism which has always existed, but should be compared to modern racism, which quite possibly had its start with the defeat of the Spanish Armada. The values given skin color are imposed, and not biological.
Gender is quite likely the first "othered" identification, is biological in origin and only recently has been accepted as far more complex.
Both Gender and Race are healing from millennia of damage. Both white and male are dominant as far as power, and that has caused and continues to cause, incredible amout of damage in itself.
So, if a dark complected black person wanted to say "I'm white" how do you think that would work out? What would be the motivation?
jberryhill
(62,444 posts)A key point in the context here.
Her ability to identify as African American - and I understand that her adopted siblings, schoolmates, etc., were - is received among others as a manifestation of white privilege.
It certainly never worked in the other direction, and was a crime to do so.
gollygee
(22,336 posts)As a white person, and from the photos of her when young a fair white person, she has the privilege of making herself appear darker and being considered legitimate when doing so, but most people of color aren't given that option in our society. Our racist society decides who is what color, and yes our society makes it up but it still has strong negative consequences for some people. She can be "transracial" to get a job she wants, but if the going gets tough she's left with the option to go back to white again. Most African Americans can't just pretend to be white to get a job. Unemployment rates might not be what they are if they could. It just seems very privileged to have an interest, and want a job, and change your identity to get that job, when people on the other side of this can't do the same.
And I don't see the comparison to being transgender. There's a biological component to that. Race is entirely a social construct.
ismnotwasm
(42,674 posts)There is not a true choice. Only a white choice
cali
(114,904 posts)perpetrating hoaxes about racially motivated attacks and other bizarre and ugly lies, make her a poor standard bearer.
philosslayer
(3,076 posts)However, I've seen many attackers outraged that she would presume to call herself African American. Whereas, anyone attacking Caitlyn Jenner for presuming to call herself a female would be (rightly) called out for their transphobia.
cali
(114,904 posts)She didn't lie. Before she transitioned, she said she identified as a woman in a male body. Rachel just lied
Ms. Toad
(38,581 posts)And, depending on what bits and pieces you determine make up a male body, she still is a woman in a male body.
It is a bit deceiving to have watched the instantaneous transformation into Caitlyn, and to expect trans* individuals generally to have such clear dividing lines. Many, if not most, trans* people go through a period in which certain people know them as one gender, and others know them as a different gender. Many, if not most, also identify personally (even if it is not spoken aloud) as the gender they will eventually present as. And, many trans* individuals never undergo a physical transformation (or at least not a complete one).
So to say that it is different because Caitlyn didn't say she was a woman until after she transitioned (and what Doziel did was bad because she identified as African American before she transitioned), puts most trans* individuals in the lying/bad category. It is not that clean a process.
Frankly, what Doziel did strikes me as cultural appropriation and privileged (since she can just decide not to be black whenever she feels like it), as well as deceptive since she told a number of lies (even taking her assertion of being African American at face value).
jberryhill
(62,444 posts)While on the one hand, "race" has no precise meaning, it is also patronizing to say "there is no such thing as race" in the context of continued undeniable social consequences of the widespread belief that there is such a thing and that it matters.
In other words, if you set out to put all of the people in the world, or a large subset thereof, into neatly labeled boxes by "race" or "gender", you'll find that there is no neat division that is going to allow you to sort everyone out that way.
If it had ever been common to "accept", say, African Americans who identified as "white" - and there is a long story in that alone - then, sure, it wouldn't be discomfiting that a person who, by general consensus, would be considered "white" to be accepted in their identification as something else.
In other words, this woman's self-identification is itself taken by many as a manifestation of white privilege.
To me, it seems that her parents had adopted several African American children and either she more closely identifies herself with her siblings, or as the biological child of parents who adopted other children, may have some issues that she has not dealt with in a constructive way.
There is also, in this particular situation, a problem with honesty. She had, for example, posted a picture of an African American man on her Facebook page as her putative father, which was simply not the case, and had engaged in various other fabrications along the way.
Being "accepted" for who you are, and lying about it in the first place, are two different things.
Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)diamondhead
(54 posts)There's no such thing as "race", it's a human construct with no roots in scientific inquiry whatsoever. In fact, the whole concept of race is rooted in IGNORANCE about the reality: That we are all the same species, regardless of our particular genetic make up. We invented race because we didn't understand that skin color or eye slant was nothing more than particular genes expressing themselves within homogeneous populations separated by geography.
Yupster
(14,308 posts)on whether affirmative action should be based on income rather than race.
Is it now time to make that transition?
TwilightGardener
(46,416 posts)present yourself, regardless of genetic makeup and physical characteristics?
foo_bar
(4,193 posts)If you want to put pale-skinned African on the census form, godspeed, I suppose we're Africans in exile, and the miniscule amount of DNA that divides us doesn't fit neatly into checkboxes, so I think people can be whatever imaginary thing they imagine race to mean. I mean discrimination is real but it's based on imaginary stuff, because humans are lousy number crunchers when you get down to it, so the lazy ones say "ah fuck it, people with presumed feminine genitalia are bad drivers" even if insurance companies can prove otherwise.
But, yeah, I don't get TV so I dunno what the Jenner business is about. I think gender is almost as fluid or nonbinary as this "race" stuff, I think a time will come when we're only mildly threatened by the sheer diversity of things that happen in nature.
Prism
(5,815 posts)It seems much of gender identity manifests itself early on. We see it today in young children who do not identify with their physical genital characteristics. There are vast swaths of psychological research backing this up. Gender identity has a way of asserting itself.
This is not true of ethnocultural identity. It doesn't spring spontaneously from biological predispositions. Culture is learned. It can also be chosen.
Look at someone like Eddie Huang. He is Taiwanese-American, but he identified with hip hop culture as a young man. He adopted African-American culture as part of his individual cultural identity and often talks about the profound impact it has on his life. But at no point would he identify himself as black. He remains a cis-gendered heterosexual of Taiwanese-American heritage.
A transgender individual does not make a choice. It isn't a preference. It isn't, "This speaks to me, and I would like to be that." They simply are that gender, whether they want to be or not.
Rachel Dolezal made a choice. Whether that is an appropriate choice isn't for me to say. It's not my community she was adopting as her identity. But the fact she had a choice, made it, and then for some reason lied like crazy about it isn't analogous to the transgender experience. I think the two things are very far apart.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)Agree with everything.
Warpy
(114,585 posts)Congratulations.
philosslayer
(3,076 posts)Instead of mocking it, why don't you explain why?
bravenak
(34,648 posts)Transgender and what that lady did? I don't.
philosslayer
(3,076 posts)Two high schoolers applying for college:
Student A, Self-identifies as a female, and applies at an all-woman college. Checks the box as "female" (this happens frequently by the way)
Student B, Self-identifies as an African-American, and applies to college. Checks the box as "African-American"
If I can choose my gender, why can I not choose my race?
bravenak
(34,648 posts)It's a privilege to get to decide to be black one day. She can always go back to white. Black people can't decide to BE white.
BlueEye
(449 posts)The golfer Tiger Woods identifies as Asian, since his mother is Thai-Chinese. I accept Tiger Woods' asserted racial identity. Do you?
bravenak
(34,648 posts)I call him Black too. He's black. My sister is part Asian and looks the part. She's black. Welcome to America.
Interesting how centuries of history can suddenly be..ignored
bravenak
(34,648 posts)Here's where I'm at: She could have said "I'm from a predominantly Caucasian background, but I strongly identify with AA culture and the struggle for equality. I grew up in Mississippi influenced by black culture. I have 4 black siblings. I attended Howard University. I married a black man and my son is black". Instead she constructed an identity based on lies, some of them very hurtful and some disrespectful to the AA community.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)She would have been accepted by being herself. No need to fake the funk.
treestar
(82,383 posts)And how can the white who decides they are black have other white people accept that, and if they did accept that, would they treat her as black, that is, would the racists be bigoted towards her? Would she have a harder time finding a job or find the police more suspicious of her? She can say she is black, but the people who don't know she is will let her continue to live in white privilege.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)It's not about checking a box.
Either you're a clueless wonder or a shit stirring troll.
morningfog
(18,115 posts)Warpy
(114,585 posts)And I already did.
LostOne4Ever
(9,749 posts)beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts) gollygee
(22,336 posts)"Blackface is still blackface, even if you keep it on for seven years, twist your hair, and go to Howard on scholarship. #MimicryIsNotSolidarity"
I'm wondering what people think about him using the term "blackface" for this. It's literally what she did, but she didn't mock people in a minstrel show way.
LostOne4Ever
(9,749 posts)[font style="font-family:'Georgia','Baskerville Old Face','Helvetica',fantasy;" size=4 color=teal]Transsexual people have been shown to have brains more similar to their desired sex than to their assigned one.
BTW: I think you are confusing Trangender and Transsexual. While all transsexual people are transgender people, not all transgender people are transsexual.[/font]
Number23
(24,544 posts)black so that she can make money speaking about what it means to be a black woman?
Number23
(24,544 posts)But this one is my favorite:
'Rachel Dolezal Definitely Nailed The Hair, I'll Give Her That'
http://jezebel.com/rachel-dolezal-definitely-nailed-the-hair-ill-give-her-1710899988
bravenak
(34,648 posts)But for real though, her hair was the business. Making me think about going to the beauty supply and hooking it up for the summer.
Number23
(24,544 posts)
bravenak
(34,648 posts)Response to Number23 (Reply #46)
Post removed
Number23
(24,544 posts)(and kind) to call your post a false equivalency at best.
Being transgendered is NOTHING like what this woman did. Your post is not only offensive but incredibly clueless.
morningfog
(18,115 posts)beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)You should delete your post and the op.
Disgusting.
philosslayer
(3,076 posts)Several people agreeing and willing to have a dialogue, and the vocal minority mocking or accusing those willing to have a discussion of having an agenda. Disheartening.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)Why are you dismissing their anger?
morningfog
(18,115 posts)Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)Let everyone see the real you.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)Many people have explained the difference but they doubled down.
Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)Looks like they'll be taking a little break.
On Fri Jun 12, 2015, 04:55 PM you sent an alert on the following post:
What the hell is transgender? Is that when a man puts on a dress and pretends to be
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6825150
REASON FOR ALERT
This post is disruptive, hurtful, rude, insensitive, over-the-top, or otherwise inappropriate.
YOUR COMMENTS
Please put this trans phobic troll out of our misery--they've had plenty of educating on the subject in this thread and yet they still spew out transphobia like "putting on a dress and pretending to be a woman" in disputing that the word transracial is not a thing.
JURY RESULTS
A randomly-selected Jury of DU members completed their review of this alert at Fri Jun 12, 2015, 05:02 PM, and voted 6-1 to HIDE IT.
Juror #1 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: Not cool.
Juror #2 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #3 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: This person is not trans phobic. He/she is using parody of the preceding post to make a point.
Juror #4 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: Tired of this shit, too.
Juror #5 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: This poster is a longtime troll and I'm at a loss why he hasn't been banned. Hide.
Juror #6 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: Yikes!
Juror #7 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: No explanation given
Thank you.
Cannot reply to automated messages
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)After seeing some of the op's other posts I don't buy that it's a parody.
Fool me once...
eta: 1 more and they go on vacation
Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)They took the opportunity to try to cloak what they really wanted to say and hoped they could get away with it. Such bs.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)Right wing bigots do the same thing all the time.
Spazito
(55,435 posts)Well written alert as well.
Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)
Initech
(108,674 posts)
Spazito
(55,435 posts)Juries are hit and miss most of the time, imo. I suspect jurors on the OP, depending on when the alert was sent, might have given the poster the benefit of the doubt or just didn't get the real intent behind the OP.
Number23
(24,544 posts)Although I had no idea that this was not this person's first go at the rodeo.
Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)I didn't want to leave any room for them to claim later that they got a bad jury that didn't appreciate satire. Otherwise we'd have weeks of people claiming we are humorless scolds that don't get the subtleties of delicate wordplay. Please, as if!
Plus, there was this last week: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026791098
Number23
(24,544 posts)
Oh and I thought you might get a kick out of this:
What the hell is transracial? Is that when a white woman puts her hair in braids and pretends to be
> http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6824849
>
> REASON FOR ALERT
>
> This post is disruptive, hurtful, rude, insensitive, over-the-top, or otherwise inappropriate.
>
> ALERTER'S COMMENTS
>
> Reference post 75 , which a jury hid. Then how is this post different?
>
> You served on a randomly-selected Jury of DU members which reviewed this post. The review was completed at Fri Jun 12, 2015, 07:09 PM, and the Jury voted 2-5 to LEAVE IT.
>
> Juror #1 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
> Explanation: No explanation given
> Juror #2 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
> Explanation: No explanation given
> Juror #3 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
> Explanation: No explanation given
> Juror #4 voted to HIDE IT
> Explanation: No explanation given
> Juror #5 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
> Explanation: No explanation given
> Juror #6 voted to HIDE IT
> Explanation: No explanation given
> Juror #7 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
> Explanation: No explanation given
Ain't that some shit??
Starry Messenger
(32,380 posts)AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)Right now for purposes of college admissions federal regulations say if you say you are black, then you are.
Imagine if a while lot of white and asian kids chise to self identify as african american? Colleges would then be a lot more diverse, while excluding a lot of people descended from slaves.
gollygee
(22,336 posts)racism would be finished as a social construct. The issue is that people can't really self-identify, unless they put some work into it as she did, and even then not everyone can. Society forces race on us and decides what race we are. We don't choose because it isn't an internal thing. I don't care what you call yourself, if you're dark enough you will be the victim of racism regardless. You can't self-identify yourself out of that.
treestar
(82,383 posts)or is it?
But I think you could be part of the culture. I remember a movie where there was a white family that stayed behind in the city - never went out to the suburbs with the rest of the white flight. The neighborhood became Hispanic. There was a white kid who grew up there who spoke like the Hispanics and was essentially one of them, because that was where he grew up.
Her adopted siblings who were black might have made her feel black, even if she isn't. From what she had in common with them.
ScreamingMeemie
(68,918 posts)Sorry, but your past posts kind of blew it...but you have a nice weekend now. We're in for a scorcher here.
Takket
(23,701 posts)I.E. you might have a penis but there is a physical real life reason you identify as a woman. and vice versa. I've never heard of any such difference between white and black where you might be white but you have biological and neurological reasons for identifying as black.
I think she's just a fraud. I think she really cares about the NAACP and its mission and African Americans, and just found herself getting way too caught up in it to the point that she wanted to change her appearance. So I don't think she meant to harm anyone, but she's still a fraud.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)What is wrong with you?
JustAnotherGen
(38,037 posts) 
CreekDog
(46,192 posts)And you know why? Well, we do.
Spider Jerusalem
(21,786 posts)Gender dysphoria is an actual thing. There's a body of evidence that suggests that gender identity disorders have a biological basis. See for instance the recent literature review on the subject published in the journal Endocrine Practice. "Race" as such is a social category. There may be some genetic markers in specific populations that enable identifying their ancestry relative to other populations, but "blackness" or "whiteness" are socially constructed and not innate, or biological, or neurological.
NuclearDem
(16,184 posts)See the OP's hidden post.
morningfog
(18,115 posts)tabasco
(22,974 posts)Thanks.
Bonx
(2,353 posts)Why *can't* she self identify with what she feels ?
gollygee
(22,336 posts)I just read that on Facebook. I think that's one of the two issues. Here's the whole comment:
"I couldn't wake up tomorrow and say I'm white AND I ACTUALLY DO HAVE WHITE ANCESTRY. I would be laughed out the fucking room AND RIGHTFULLY SO. No one would stand up tell white people "Just let her be white w/ her brown ass!" because whiteness is a boundary to be respected, blackness is not. Period. End of story."
(The other issue is that gender identity is biological and internal, and race is a social construct -created by our external society and forced upon us.)
Recursion
(56,582 posts)A white person wears a dashiki and he's "learning about another culture"; a black man wears a business suit and until recently he was overturning the social order and putting his life at risk. Even today there are places where a black guy in a business suit gets hostile stares.
guillaumeb
(42,649 posts)it seems obvious that race, or what is called race, is more of a group identifier than anything else.
And given that there are millions of "mixed race" people all over the world, how does the identification work?
And given that hominids originated in the Rift Valley in Africa, what does that say about race?
seveneyes
(4,631 posts)cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)DustyJoe
(849 posts)I identify as a transalien from upper Mars.
Branson needs to get off his laurels and hurry up with that private space travel.
The word 'trans' is being bent into a mobius loop of neverending nonsense.
CTBlueboy
(154 posts)So faking a hate crimes and trying acting like she understand the struggle is fine by some huh instresting !
Has she lost a daughter or son at the hands of the police
Has she been told she will not meet a mate because of her complextion?
Has she been labeled a angry black women when giving her opinion
She is a fraud
People saying NAACP chapter is sticking by Ms. transracial,need to remember LA chapter also gave Donald Sterling awards prior to the leak tapes even though there was years of his discrimination
alcibiades_mystery
(36,437 posts)
Inauthentic.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)Honestly it would probably be better for her if she had lied just to get the scholarship and the NAACP job; people would probably be more forgiving.
This was deeper. She lied to give herself an identity and sense of purpose that her white skin and blonde hair didn't earn her growing up. She lied to get win the Oppression Olympics that so many discussions have a way of becoming.
gwheezie
(3,580 posts)I like the idea of being able to choose your culture but in order to do that the overall culture must eliminate racism. At this point there is a predominant race that has and continues to treat the other as less than equal. You can't pretend otherwise.
craigmatic
(4,510 posts)Even if you could do that the issue then becomes a community thing. Certain groups of people don't accept outsiders claiming their struggle when they have no organic connection to it. This is especially true if said group of people have been oppressed. If I was an east Asian I couldn't go to Palestine and claim Arab then expect to be accepted by the Palestinians. They'd look at me funny at least and probably threaten my life at most. If the current media coverage of police brutality has shown us anything it's that trans-racialism will never apply to black people especially if they're darker skinned, living in a white community and married to white people. That's why the whole idea is bullshit cultural appropriation is what this really is.
Skittles
(171,595 posts)no INDEED
JustAnotherGen
(38,037 posts)It is pretty clear!
cwydro
(51,308 posts)JustAnotherGen
(38,037 posts)Who don't at a minimum think he lacked manners.
They would probably come into my home, sit at my dinner table, chew with their mouth open, wipes their nose on their sleeve, and throw the chicken bones on the floor.
The whole thing is gross.
Heidi
(58,846 posts)I am a white woman. Caitlyn Jenner is a white woman. I do not feel that Caitlyn Jenner is appropriating white female culture. Furthermore, it could be argued that white female culture is a dominant culture in comparison to other cultures, including African-American culture.
I would be interested in hearing from my African-American sisters and brothers about whether they feel Rachel Dolezal is appropriating A-A culture, because that is not my call--as a member of the dominant culture--to make.
Respect.
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)No relation.
JustAnotherGen
(38,037 posts)
JCMach1
(29,196 posts)what her background was...
It may not be criminal, but it is definite red flag territory about her, personally.
Zorra
(27,670 posts)wide variety of different ways that individuals personally experience and/or express gender.
A person who "cross dresses" and goes out in public once a month wearing the clothes and accoutrements of the culturally designated opposite sex is considered transgender.
A person who knows from early childhood that their body does not conform to the essential nature of their culturally designated gender, and who, because of this dichotomy, experiences discomfort so profound that they would do anything they possibly could to make their body conform to their gender, is also considered transgender.
Obviously, there is a difference as wide and deep as the Pacific Ocean between these two very distinct states of being, yet both are lumped under the blanket term transgender. This appears to me to lead to great public confusion over who, or what, transgender people are.
More accurate, and specific, nomenclature is necessary.