It can be intimidating to be a white parent of a black child. Terri often defends her ability to be a good mother for Kaishawn. She has faced hostility from strangers who do not agree with her decision to raise a black child. But she makes conscious efforts not to raise Kaishawn entirely in a white culture. The Kent family eats collard greens at dinner, among other foods, and celebrates both Kwanzaa and Christmas.

Part of celebrating more than one culture is to not stop with one’s own. The Kents celebrate Hanukkah, too, after Terri’s son, Samuel, came home from kindergarten, disappointed his family wasn’t Jewish after learning about Hanukkah.

The Hawaiian-born Isaacs thinks many students don’t think about multiculturalism because they are satisfied just thinking of themselves as Americans. Being American is great, he says, but it shouldn’t be the only identity students explore. “I think a lot of kids here really have no clue what their cultural identity is about,” Isaacs says. “They don’t seem to want to strive for information about their heritage. You should always try to find out what your background is and where you came from. Don’t just settle for ‘I’m here right now’ — every family has its own story.”

Liz Smith, assistant professor of history, says a growing number of Americans identify themselves as biracial or multiracial, and the 2000 U.S. Census reflects this. It was the first time respondents were allowed to mark more than one race.

About 6.8 million people, or 2.4 percent of the U.S. population, reported being more than one race, according to the 2000 Census. It is notable that the census asks respondents not if they are more than one race, but if they identify as more than one.

“There is a problem with using terms like ‘race’ because there are no real differences between races,” Smith says.

“The idea that race is somehow something that you are is a socially constructed idea. There is no one category of ‘white’ or ‘black’ or ‘mixed.’ ”
Steve Michael, vice provost of diversity, says Kent State is focusing on diversity education in hopes that learning about other cultures and people will teach students more about themselves. “That diversity is the strength of that family, not the weakness of that family,” Michael says. “How do we integrate a human family that’s unfortunately too fragmented on too many superficial levels?”

The future of multiculturalism in America is uncertain, but its success likely relies on American youth becoming excited about diversity — that racial and cultural differences don’t have to divide people. Those differences make them stronger.

Kaishawn says she never wished her family looked like her. “I never really wished that they were black,” she says. “There were a lot of people they could have adopted, but they picked me.”

Jessica Rothschuh is a senior magazine journalism major. This is her third time writing for The Burr.

A nation’s race to increase awareness

More than 6 million people in the United States listed themselves as two or more races during the 2000 census. In the city of Kent, 562, or 2 percent of individuals, marked themselves as being more than one race.

Young people all over the country are noticing the growing number of multiracial individuals. The MAVIN Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the celebration and empowerment of multiracial people and families, sponsored the Generation MIX Tour, created in 2005 to raise the nation’s awareness about the growing number of mixed heritage and multiracial youth and families, according to the organization’s Web site, www.generationmix.org.

On April 4, 2005, five multiracial young adults began an 8,000-mile journey in an RV across the United States, stopping in 17 cities and working closely with colleges to promote their cause to both children and adults. It offered several arts and crafts activities for young children to help them feel secure with their diverse heritages. There also were how-to lists for parents to help them talk with their children about finding their own identity and being proud to be a person of different races.

The tour did not stop at Kent State, but college students from other universities were involved in the project. The tour taught college students how to recognize the needs of multiracial students and to help make their own communities more inclusive.

— Amanda Stanley