‘Mixed Race’ Children in British Society: Some Theoretical Considerations
The British Journal of Sociology
Volume 35, Number 1 (March, 1984)
pages 42-61
Anne Wilson
A study of the racial identity of British ‘mixed race’ children raises a number of theoretical issues about the racial categorization system of Britain; in particular, the validity of the assumption that British racial thought is strictly dichotomous (perceived in terms of the two mutually exclusive categories of ‘black’ and ‘white’) is called into question.
In British and American sociological literature, mixed race people have often been described as occupying a ‘marginal’ or an in-between position, from which they can only escape by adopting full membership of either the black or the white group. None the less, some sociologists have suggested that it is possible for mixed race people to steer a successful course between the two groups or to alter their racial self-image according to circumstance: more generally, it has been argued that the process of ethnic identity is more fluid and dynamic than it is frequently depicted.
The dichotomous ‘black-or-white’ model of racial identity stems from analysis of the American racial structure: the investigation of British racial identity would appear to require a more flexible view of the racial categorization system.
When sociologists attempt to formulate a sociological problem about a particular group of people, their first concern is to locate the boundaries of the group in question and then to place discussion of it in the context of sociological theory. Where the object of enquiry is defined in racial terms this research step merits special consideration; for the question of what constitutes racial difference is still a matter of contention.
In this paper, I shall explore some of the theoretical issues involved in studying the racial identity of the children of British interracial…
