Multiracial

The terms multiracial, biracial and mixed-race describe people whose ancestors are not of a single race. One example might be a person with an Asian mother and African father. Another might be the Mestizo people of Mexico (and other Latin American countries) who are descended from Spanish and indigenous ancestors.

Multiracial also describes a society or group that is composed of people from more than one racial or ethnic group.

Societal acceptance of mixed-race marriages and offspring varies widely from person to person and region to region. In Nazi Germany, "racial purity" was considered by the government to be an important goal for society. In the United States, especially the southeast region, marriage between African American and Caucasian people has historically been looked down upon. (As recently as 2003, Taylor County High School[?] in Taylor County, Georgia has held seperate Prom celebrations for black and white students.) However, recent data suggests that multiracial marriages are becoming increasingly common in the United States.

Multiracial people won a victory of sorts with the 2000 United States Census, which allowed participants to select more than one racial category. Still, there remain many circumstances in which biracial individuals are left with no real response when asked for demographic data.