What do you think of transracial people? I’m curious mostly because most of them are white people trying to be Asian and as an Asian person I feel slightly offended
This is such a fun question to answer, one I've been too busy to answer but I've been waiting to answer, anon.
We need to understand before this that race is a social construct, not biological one. Race was created by 'race scientists' around two hundred, three hundred years (I think) to justify segregation between Europeans and POC and has been disproven. Race is social, political and historical. A lot of times, when people use the word race, they mean ethnicity, which pertains the cultural aspects race does not.
While race itself is a social construct, appearance is not. The way you are perceived, what race you are perceived as, it not a social construct. A person who is Black may be treated in a worse fashion than a person who is white. So, someone's race (social construct) is influenced by their appearances (not a social construct) and affects the way they are perceived/treated.
When someone identifies as transracial, they embrace the privilege of the race they are born as but not the oppression of the race they identify with.
Let's take Oli London as an example, a Tiktoker who is highly controversial due to identifying as transracial. Let's get this straight: Oli London is, if we're using the terms under race, white.
In identifying as Korean, Oli retains the privilege a white individual holds (e.g. easier time getting jobs, aligning with the cultural norm that is whiteness, abundance of representation in media) while taking on none of the discrimination faced by a Korean person (stereotypes, racism, legal treatment). So, Oli London can opt in and out of their identity.
Race being a social construct built on how people are perceived, Asians (such as you and me, anon) have no choice in how we are perceived. We have to face the discrimination, stereotypes, racism that, even in current times, is congruent with our identity.
Trans people also get caught up in this argument. But important distinction: while race is entirely an external identify, transness is determined by an internal sense of self. While trans people can choose to conform to their gender (i.e., a trans woman wearing typically feminine clothes), trans identities are not dependant on how you are perceived. Race is.
Why do people identify as transracial?
I personally believe it is a longing for a sense of belonging. Noticeably, it's white people wanting to identify as a minority group. This strong sense of cultural acceptance is hugely tempting for individuals like Oli London, compelling them to conflate their appreciation of a culture to actually being apart of the race associated with the culture.
But even if you aren't part of a culture or part of a racial group, there are ways to appreciate the culture. Engaging (while being sensitive of social implications) in activities present in the culture and lifting up the voices of those who are, in Oli London's case, Korean is a far better way to show support to Koreans than falsely identifying as one.
Yeah, it's offensive, and for good reason. There is science that goes against the whole idea of transracialism and it seems to me that white 'transracial' people can't read the room, lol. Thanks for this question!
