Mixed Race Studies

Local Author Dmae Roberts

Another Read Through
3932 N Mississippi Avenue
Portland, Oregon 97227
2016-09-01, 19:00-20:00 PDT (Local Time)

Dmae Roberts will read from her book and give a preview of a larger conversation that will be coming soon with the Oregon Humanities Conversation Project. The Letting Go Trilogies: Stories of a Mixed-Race Family traces four decades of what it means to be a mixed-race adult who sometimes called herself “Secret Asian Woman.” With her personal essays written over a ten-year period, Dmae Roberts journeys through biracial identity, Taiwan, sci-fi, and the trials of her interracial Taiwanese and Oklahoman family amid love, loss and letting go of past regrets and grief. Roberts has been chosen by Oregon Humanities to be a Conversation Project leader with the topic: What Are You? Mixed-Race and Interracial Families in Oregon’s Past and Future. This reading and conversation will draw on her personal experiences and historical research on the mixed-race experience in Oregon.

Dmae will give a preview of her Oregon Humanities Conversation Project topic and feature a reading from her book The Letting Go Trilogies: Stories of a Mixed-Race Family with an interractive talk: “What Are You?” A Mixed-Race Reading & Conversation.”

For more information, click here.

Mixed-race in Oregon

The Asian Reporter
Portland, Oregon
Volume 26, Number 12 (2016-06-20)
ISSN: 1094-9453
page 6, columns 2-3

Dmae Roberts, Writer, Producer, Media and Theatre Artist

I received some exciting news this month. I was selected as one of the speakers for the Oregon Humanities Conversation Project, a program that brings people together to talk about current issues and ideas.

Participating in the program wasn’t something I was eager to do at first, since I’ve always seen myself as a bit shy. Although as an actor I’ve performed Shakespeare on Portland stages, typically I’m more of a wallflower. As I’ve gotten older, however, I found it wasn’t that I didn’t like talking to people. Instead, I realized I only enjoy talking when there’s an intriguing subject.

During the past decade, I’ve gravitated toward discussing the meaning of my mixed-race identity. While growing up in rural Oregon, there were few people of color. In my small school in the 1970s, I suspected I had mixed-race classmates, but it was a taboo subject, so it was not talked about. Students who could not pass as white, like my younger brother, endured racism. I, on the other hand, who appeared white to others, felt like a secret Asian girl. In my 40-plus years of adulthood, I’ve experienced shifts in the understanding of and attitude around multiracial identity and also witnessed the transformation in terminology for race and ethnicity from derogatory slurs to an expanding list of proud names…

Read the entire article here.

Oregon’s Portland Community College to mark ‘Whiteness History Month’

NBC News
2016-01-21

Shamar Walters and Cassandra Vinograd

First comes Black History Month and then … Whiteness History Month?

A community college in Oregon has set aside April to look at “whiteness” — but not to celebrate what it’s described as a social construct which leads to inequality.

Portland Community College’s Diversity Council is behind the event, which it called a “bold adventure” to examine “race and racism through an exploration of the construction of whiteness, its origins and heritage.”

The project is “not a celebratory endeavor” but an “effort to change our campus climate,” the school said on its website…

Read the entire article here.

I won’t apologize for my blackness.

Lake Views: The Award Winning Student Newspaper of Lake Oswego High School
Lake Oswego, Oregon
2015-10-07

Camryn Leland

It’s not my job to make you feel comfortable.

In an article written about the use of the n-word in the NFL it was stated, “The Story of the n-word, in many ways, parallels the overall story of race in America – from the bloody circumstances of its birth to the messy state of its present. The word is visible almost anywhere there is racial conflict: the lawless realm of social media, the vast landscape of pop culture,”… or the halls of Lake Oswego High School.

I’m Camryn Montana Leland but only my mother calls me Camryn Montana (usually when I’m in deep trouble). I moved to our lovely bubble of Lake O when I was 8 years old and I come from a multi-racial family. As a little kid I did not think being half black would have much of an impact on me, but oh boy, was I wrong…

…For years I have grown up surrounded by people who do not look like me, and it is felt like living in a zoo. From the constant stares to the idiotic questions and ignorant statements. No, the other black person in the class is not related to me. Yes, I do in fact know my dad. No, it is not “unbelievable” that my mom is a white woman. No, there is no reason in pointing out the fact that he’s black, I imagine he is very aware. I can almost guarantee you asking her if you can use the N word just to “tell the joke right” is in no way going to be o.k. with her…

Read the entire article here.

Who am I? Who do you think I am? Stability of racial/ethnic self-identification among youth in foster care and concordance with agency categorization

Children and Youth Services Review
Volume 56, September 2015
pages 61–67
DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.06.011

Jessica Schmidt
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Shanti Dubey
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Larry Dalton
Oregon Department of Human Services, Children, Adults and Families, Portland, Oregon

May Nelson
Portland Public Schools, Portland, Oregon

Junghee Lee
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Molly Oberweiser Kennedy
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Connie Kim-Gervey
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Laurie Powers
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Sarah Geenen
Regional Research Institute for Human Services
Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Highlights

• Examined stability of racial/ethnic self-identification among adolescents in foster care
• Compared youth self-report with agency categorizations of race/ethnicity
• Found especially high rates of agency-youth discordance for certain groups of youth
• Child welfare system more likely to classify youth as White compared to school and youth themselves

While it has been well documented that racial and ethnic disparities exist for children of color in child welfare, the accuracy of the race and ethnicity information collected by agencies has not been examined, nor has the concordance of this information with youth self-report. This article addresses a major gap in the literature by examining 1) the racial and ethnic self-identification of youth in foster care, and the rate of agreement with child welfare and school categorizations; 2) the level of concordance between different agencies (school and child welfare); and 3) the stability of racial and ethnic self-identification among youth in foster care over time. Results reveal that almost 1 in 5 youth change their racial identification over a one-year period, high rates of discordance exist between the youth self-report of Native American, Hispanic and multiracial youth and how agencies categorize them, and a greater tendency for the child welfare system to classify a youth as White, as compared to school and youth themselves. Information from the study could be used to guide agencies towards a more youth-centered and flexible approach in regard to identifying, reporting and affirming youth’s evolving racial and ethnic identity.

Read the entire article here.

Portlander Damaris Webb explores racial gray areas in ‘The Box Marked Black’

The Oregonian
Portland, Oregon
2013-02-16

Marty Hughley

When it came time for Damaris Webb to apply for college, her father encouraged her to check the box on application forms indicating “black” as her racial origin. For long enough in his family’s history, being black had made life difficult. But maybe in this circumstance, by the 1980s, it would be an advantage instead.

But she thought differently.

“I argued that I should mark ‘other,’ because that’s what I was,” Webb says in her solo theater piece “The Box Marked Black,” which opened last weekend at Ethos/IFCC. “Not that I was ashamed to be black. But I thought if I got into college for being black, when I showed up they’d be disappointed.”

Depending on what you believe about race and classifications thereof, Webb is black. Or white. Or both. Or either. Or other…

Read the entire article here.

Pilot Episode

The Source Weekly
Bend, Oregon
2014-03-20

Brianna Brey

Jason Graham (The Source Weekly)

The Lot’s new open mic calls on Bend’s creative types

“Calling ALL local musicians, artist and hacks,” reads the event listing for Bend’s newest open mic night, an free-for-all gathering on Wednesday nights at The Lot. “Sing a tune, read a poem, do a dance, tell a story, present your art…be creative. Here is an opportunity to share your soul.”

Soul sharing is the M.O. for local poet, musician, painter and generally ubiquitous artist MOsley WOtta, a.k.a. Jason Graham, the host of the weekly event. Open mics have the stigma of a musician’s domain, but Graham emphasized the “openness” of this particular event, encouraging all types of creativity, not just the singer/songwriter.

“As much as I love the musical open mics and the poetry slams, I’m trying to see what all we can get,” explained Graham. “It’s sort of like a workout. We already have the massive pectoral muscles that are the singer/songwriters. We want to keep that part strong, but work the other parts of it, too.”

This Wednesday, March 19, will mark the third week of the open mic and already Graham said the event is attracting the diverse talents of Bend. Silly and serious, the event is a platform for the community to test its collective material…

Read the entire article here.

Mosley Wotta releases new album

The Bulletin
Bend, Oregon
2012-09-14

Ben Salmon

Bend hip-hop artist performs in Bend tonight

Anyone who knows local artist, musician and educator Jason Graham—aka MOsley WOtta, leader of the hip-hop band of the same name—knows that his relocation to Bend at age 9 from Chicago’s north side has had a profound and longstanding effect on his worldview, and thus, his art.

Get Graham, 29, talking (not a difficult task at all), and you’re likely to eventually hear about his experience as a mixed-race kid moving from an ultra-urban environment to the lily-white Bend of a decade ago. And he won’t hesitate to point out that his own stereotypes about “the country” were as deeply entrenched as those he encountered in others.

The collision of race and culture is a subject Graham has always touched on in his music, going back to his time in the local rap collective Person People, up through his first solo album, 2010’s “Wake.”

But tonight, Graham will celebrate the release of the second Mosley Wotta album, “KinKonK,” at the old PoetHouse Art space in Bend (see “If you go”), and at the same time, he’ll unveil a more direct, more forceful and more thoughtful set of songs on the subject than he ever has before. It’s also material that may surprise some of the folks who’ve come to love the Mosley Wotta band that, since winning Bend’s inaugural Last Band Standing competition two years ago, has dominated local festival stages with its upbeat funk-hop and positive message of unity through music…

Read the entire article here.

Telling His Story, Keeping His Promises: MOsley WOtta as performer and father

True North
Central Oregon Parenting
January/February 2012

Michelle Bazemore
photography by Kimberly Teichrow

Note from Steven F. Riley: I will be the co-host on the February 22, 2012 podcast of Mixed Chicks Chat with featured guest Jason Graham.

It’s difficult to spend time with Jason Graham without feeling like you’re in the presence of someone on the brink. Here is a person who has understood the art of performance since he was very small: a kid who could make his divorced parent laugh through her tears after a particularly nasty telephone conversation with her ex; an artist not content to kill it in his hometown; a man who empowers kids to find their voices by directing them to “tell your individual version. The theme has been done, but not your version.”

His version is a study in juxtaposition. He is a rapper, but doesn’t embody the mainstream definition of a hip hop star. He is modern, but inspired by ancient themes. He is physically graceful, yet enjoys playing a grotesque role to make his audience uncomfortable, and to relay a philosophy about superficiality. In his music he will break up a rapid-fire delivery of rap with a sudden drawn-out melodic phrase, often with a theatrical inflection a la Busta Rhymes.

To label Jason Graham a rapper is selling him rather short. Seemingly driven to express himself creatively with whatever medium he is given, Graham is rightly labeled a performance artist. A distinctive voice coupled with the ability to manipulate words into a rhythmic, thought-provoking stream of consciousness make him a natural spoken-word poet and emcee. But he also paints on anything that paint adheres to, from canvas to shovels to jackets, and uses his theater background to create masks, costumes, and props to evoke different characters on stage. Graham’s upbringing in a creative, multi-cultural family has influenced his artistry, adding depth to his performances.

Compared to many commercially successful rappers, Graham is unusually willing to express vulnerability and self-doubt. “I’m comfortable being uncomfortable,” he says without irony, “and that’s what makes me glorious.” As a mixed-race kid transplanted to Bend from Chicago when he was nine years old, he knows about being self-conscious, but says emphatically that he wasn’t “supposed to escape that one way or the other.” He has gradually become more comfortable with calling himself an artist. “It’s dangerous because you invest so much of your love into something you’ve been told time and time again may not work out,” he admits. “But just because you’re an investment banker doesn’t mean it’s going to work out either. Security’s very relative.” …

…The name MOsley WOtta refers to the water content of the human body. At most times during life, the human body is made up of more than 50% water, or “mostly water.” It’s an overt gesture to draw a line of internal commonality among people who are increasingly driven to express themselves as individuals externally through fashion, body art and other surface displays. “We’re always trying to find a balance between fitting in and being ourselves,” says Graham…

Read the entire article here.

‘MOsley WOtta’ Transcends Boundaries Of Music, Poetry And Art

OPB News
Oregon Public Broadcasting
2011-12-30

David Nogueras, Central Oregon Correspondent
Bend, Oregon

Note from Steven F. Riley: I will be the co-host on the February 22, 2012 podcast of Mixed Chicks Chat with featured guest Jason Graham.

It’s been a good year for Bend’s MOsley WOtta.  The hip-hop group played shows around the state, opening for acts such as Ice Cube and Tricky.  The band plans to close out this year with a New Year’s Eve show in Bend. That’s where the band will unveil its third official release, titled Amalgum X. Bend isn’t typically thought of for it’s hip hop scene. But MOsley WOtta isn’t your typical hip hop group.

“No matter where you come from, what era you come from, there is some kind of music inside of hip hop that will grab you,” says Bend artist MOsley WOtta.

“Light skin, blue blood, gentlemen and ladies, girls and boys, this is that love, pain, grow, if you are living and breathing right now.  You know exactly what I’m talking about.” MOsley WOtta is the alter ego of 28 year old Jason Graham.  It’s also the band that Graham fronts…

…“I think he’s a classic artist, a classic creative brain.  You might meet artists and creative people who are introverted or socially awkward.  This is not that case,” says Salmon. Up on stage, Jason Graham is in his comfort zone.   But growing up biracial in the 1980 he says he’s always kind of felt as if he lived between worlds.  He was born in what he describes as a somewhat rough neighborhood in Chicago and moved to Bend at age 9.  These days he’s tough to miss.  He’s tall, lanky and exudes energy.   Graham says sometimes people don’t quite know what to make of him.

“Maybe people come up and they’re like so are you Mexican?  Are you Filipino?  Indian right?  That is just like with the music, I do see a total correlation there.  Between it’s like well it’s not exactly one thing.  And it never will be one thing, cause I’m not one thing,” says Graham…

Read the entire article here.  Listen to the audio here (00:04:54).