#stephen small

Smalltalks with Professor Stephen Small

Bridgetown, Barbados. Dave Fedel Aristide James. Verena Isilma Vasilka Cuffy.

In 1991, I introduced the phrase 'Blacks of mixed origins' in place of nasty little terms like 'half-caste', 'quarter cast', 'mixed race', to name but a few. I wanted to highlight what Black people of mixed origins and Black people (presumed to be unmixed) shared in common, while also recognising some of the distinctive problems which confront Black people of mixed origins. It was to suggest that the power of whites to define racialised identities was important, and their tendency to impose what they see as an inferior identity on people who are not 'milky white', was often the most decisive factor. This is still largely true, but not exclusively. I want to continue with that concept. But to that analysis I would add that white impositions and power are no longer the pre-eminent factor, nor should we allow them to be so. As with Black identity formation there is more fluidity now for people to choose an identity. There is less pressure to choose Black, more options to choose an intermediate category. [...] The evidence from studies of young people of mixed origins in Britain shows a distinct trend towards choosing a mixed over a single identity.

Identity formation for Black people of mixed origins follows similar identity formation for Black people (presumed to be unmixed), but can often become more convoluted. Some of the variables are more intricate, and there are other kinds of social pressures to take into account. (Once again context is critical). Partners and children in relationships that cross racialised group boundaries have to negotiate between both sets of families, and their opposition to the relationship; they have to circumvent stereotypes about the sexual motivations of Black men and white women, and what that says about Black men's attitudes towards Black women, often including their mothers; they have to negotiate how the white women in such relationships are seen as social outcasts at best, prostitutes usually, and the presumption that something must be wrong them if they want a Black boyfriend. There are also the nasty names, the offensive stereotypes, the expectations that one must prove how Black you are; as in 'half-caste' and 'half-breed', the presumption of biological degeneracy, the questioning of your political commitment. The history of Black people of mixed origins in Liverpool, and Britain's other seaports, provides sufficient evidence of trauma that has frequently been an inescapable component of a mixed identity in Britain.