A Person Whose Parents Are of Different Races

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Allen165

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Hi,

What would you call someone who has a black parent and a caucasian parent? Métis? Biracial?

Something else?

Thank you for your time.
 

SoothingDave

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You are a Canadian whose language is English and you don't know?

If it is necessary to talk about such things, "biracial" is an OK term.
 

emsr2d2

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In the UK, we do still say "mixed race" although no doubt that will become a no-no at some point. Twenty years ago, you would have heard "half-caste" - DO NOT USE THIS. I have only included it because you might still hear it from people of an older generation.
 

Allen165

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You are a Canadian whose language is English and you don't know?

If it is necessary to talk about such things, "biracial" is an OK term.

I asked because different terms are used in different English-speaking countries. That's why I wrote, "What would you call someonewho has a black parent and a caucasian parent?," as opposed to "What is someone who has a black parent and a caucasian parent called?"
 

Rover_KE

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Ah! But you didn't emphasise you in post #1.
 

Allen165

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On further consideration, I don't think either "biracial" or "mixed-race" is adequate since neither term specifies the races.
 

Rover_KE

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It's not always necessary to specify the races.

Click here to read a similar discussion on another forum.
 

probus

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A word with precisely that meaning used to exist but has fallen out of use, and nowadays virtually everyone would consider it highly offensive. The word is mulatto.
 

emsr2d2

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Well, if you are asking what I personally would call someone with one black parent and one Caucasian parent, I would call them by their given name. I do not tend to identify people by their parentage or colour of their skin. I might, if pressed, say "Well, her mum's black and her dad's white" but I would not use a word or phrase to describe her colour.
 

konungursvia

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I think mixed is the most neutral term here. People ask me all the time if my daughter is a 'mix' and I just say 'yep.'
 

5jj

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I think mixed is the most neutral term here. People ask me all the time if my daughter is a 'mix' and I just say 'yep.'
You are rather more broad-minded than I. I think that if somebody asked me such a question I would be likely to respond with something like "What the **** do you mean?"
 

konungursvia

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It may not be our minds, but the environment. Toronto is very multi-racial and multicultural, and my African classmates during my last degree were in agreement they've never seen all of the world's races truly integrated the way they are here. I take the question as something like "do you think she looks more like you or her mother?" Yes, I find it a bit close to the bone, but no, I don't think it's off limits, as you can see what a person is in most cases.
 
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