The Genealogical Imagination: The Inheritance of Interracial Identities

Abstract

The aim of this article is to examine ethnographically how ideas of descent, biology and culture mediate ideas about the inheritance of racial identities. To do this, the article draws upon interviews with the members of interracial families from Leicester, a city situated in the East Midlands region of England. The article focuses upon the genealogical narratives of the female members of interracial families who live in an ethnically diverse inner-city area of Leicester. Attention is paid to the ways in which the women mobilise and intersect ideas about kinship, ancestry, descent, belonging, place, biology and culture when they think about the inheritance of their own and/or their children's interracial identities. The article's emphasis upon the constitution of interracial identities contributes to the sociological study of race and genealogy by exploring the racialised fragmentation of ideas of inheritance and descent across racial categories and generations.

Experiences of racism and the changing nature of white privilege among lone white mothers of mixed-parentage children in the UK

“…These ranged from the occasional violent incident to the everyday looks, questions or comments from those around them. In these accounts, racism often appeared to be based on simple 'colour' or biologically based distinctions, where ethnic groups are presented as essentially fixed and separate (Tyler 2005). Byrne's (2006) argument that 'race' is a 'perceptual practice' Á that is a way of seeing the human body and categorising difference Á appears to be supported here.…”

“…Some mothers described the pressures of having to get their child's hair and clothes 'right', for fear of criticism from members of the black community that they were not adequately parenting their children. Previous research has highlighted the symbolic importance of hair in terms of racial and ethnic identification for children of mixed-parentage (Ali 2003;Tyler 2005).…”

When Markers Meet Marketing: Ethnicity, Race, Hybridity, and Kinship in Genetic Genealogy Television Advertising

“…by a conception of 'identity' which lives with and through, not despite, difference; by hybridity". Tyler's (2005) research features conventional genealogy's role in revealing mixed-race background which, she contends, enables opposition to "the essentialist folk conception of racial difference" (1). Squires (2010, p. 211) declares hybridity to be the "liminal space where negotiation and struggle occur".…”

Attitudes on DNA ancestry tests

“…Moreover, exciting literature is emerging that explores how genetic information contributes to collective (familial or community) identities and responsibilities, including notions of kinship, race, and disease (e.g. Franklin and McKinnon 2001;Tyler 2005;Strathern 2005;Tyler 2008;Silverman 2008;Bumiller 2009;and Weiner 2010). Data exploring individual-level attitudes and experiences with DNA ancestry tests (as opposed to scholarship focused on collective experiences, such as the family, community, or racial groups) remain scant.…”