Yet for others, raising multiracial children in an all white environment hasn’t hindered their expression of their uniqueness. Jeannie Edwards shares her experience as a Puerto Rican woman married to a an African American man and raising their three kids.
"It's kind of tough to speak about blending Latin and Black because culturally our families and our upbringing has been very similar. As minorities, our experience has been that we share in the same passion, values and at times struggles. Raising our children has been a positive experience, although it’s been in a predominately white environment. It may partly because my husband is a former athlete and our children are good athletes. I have never really given it much thought. They have thrived in a white environment, while all along embracing being Puerto Rican and Black. They actually feel special and think it's the perfect mix. I might have to agree with them."
Another Mom who would agree is Elizabeth Ategou. A white woman who married and is raising two boys with a West African man. In fact, they are currently living in West Africa after living in South America for a few years, yet they still call Chicago home. She finds her multicultural family to be the best of both worlds and really endeavors to provide experiences that support both cultures.
"Mostly what I think about when it comes to my multicultural family is how we are so lucky to get the best of two amazing cultures-the U.S. and West Africa. When my kids go through challenges when we move to a new place, start a new school, or we are in a place where they stand out, I talk to them about this – our good fortune to see the situation from different perspectives, and the knowledge that even if something is not exactly what we expected or wanted – we know that different is not better or worse – just different. Often this manifests first in food. When my husband first came to the States, he just could not understand that
this white, spongy,
skinless, boneless
matter on our plates
was chicken. We
have made many
such discoveries over
the years in each
other’s cultures –
once in Togo, where
we met, I found a
piece of ‘meat’ in my
bowl of Fufu (fufu is
pounded yams that
you eat with your
hands). It can be
eaten with a variety
of different
sauces...this
particular one was a
goat broth and the
mystery meat ended
up being … the goat’s
penis – yum! Over time we as a family have developed favorites – picking and choosing the best from our two cultures, but also from the countries we have lived in. In our family – African chickens rule – from the toes to the head, but when it comes to beef – it’s South America that wins."