What Are Us?

Is it time to reconstruct the meaning of race in society?

Photo by Rajiv Perera on Unsplash

Who are you…who who…who who…” — The Who

Who?

For the longest time, I did not know that Ted Williams, the great baseball player, Ted Williams, was half-Mexican. At least in terms of how we sort it out. Williams’ mother was a Mexican woman. Yet, I never knew this until he was dead. Williams was encouraged ever since he was young to not mention to people that his mother was Mexican.

I found out last week that Norah Jones, the singer-songwriter, is Indian-American (Indian). Her father is the great world musician Ravi Shankar. Now, I am no groupie of Norah Jones but she has some tunes I like. But at no point was I advised by anyone that her father was Ravi Shankar and that she was part Indian-American.

Then, I didn’t care, like I am about most of this.

Did you know that in America you once could purchase a certificate of whiteness? I did.

I am African American, Black; I look as such mostly though my skin tone is light brown to tan most of the year. The one drop rule doesn’t apply to me and then again it does; I am on sight seen as Black. How would I look buying a certificate of whiteness. I can’t. I have always at least as far as I recall comfortable…