Biracial adolescents and young adults in college counseling

Abstract

Given the growing prevalence of individuals of mixed race in the US, it is important for college counsellors to attend to how these individuals are socially pressured to understand their own racial identities. Though some scholarships suggest that it is healthy for biracial individuals to identify with the minority part of their identity, I argue that this pressure is in fact special to the US and rooted in a history of slavery. Through a cross-cultural comparison of biracial identity in the US and Haiti, and through examples and techniques from my own experience as a college counselor, I argue that the ability to embrace one’s dual racial identity as mixed individuals may be a healthier choice because it prevents internal dissonance and helps biracial young adults grapple with the effects of White supremacy on their identities