Navigating Interracial Borders: Black-White Couples and Their Social Worlds

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Acknowledgments ix ix ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In many ways, this book really began as my own journey to understand how and why people react the way they do to seeing interracial couples. Knowing the questions and scrutiny one often goes through as part of a multiracial family, I want to give my deepest thanks to the wonderful couples who opened up to me about their lives, their families, and their experiences. Also, I am indebted to the individuals who participated in the focus groups I conducted and who discussed their views on interracial couples, because there were many who refused to even engage in a dialogue about these issues. While not all of those interviewed will agree with the arguments I put forth, please know that this is not meant to be a critique of any individual or couple, but an examination of racial attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors that are sometimes only visible through responses to interracial relationships. I conducted most of the research for the book as a doctoral student at Fordham University, and I want to thank all of the faculty, administrators, and others there who were extremely supportive of my project, including Rosemary Cooney, Mark Chapman, Mark Naison, Rosa Giglio, and Mark Warren. I would also like to thank Clara Rodriguez, for challenging me to think about race in different ways, including my own position; Lynn Chancer, for helping me better conceptualize and organize my ideas through engaged and enthusiastic critiques; and my mentor, E. Doyle McCarthy, for her theoretical insight, serious and careful critiques of many drafts, and emotional support. Eastern Connecticut State University, in particular the sociology department and administration, was also particularly supportive as I made final revisions and navigated the publication process. Numerous colleagues have contributed to this book through their critiques, readings of drafts, comments on presentations, and support, such as Joane Nagel, Kerry Ann x Acknowledgments Rockquemore, Abby Ferber, Elijah Anderson, Marlese Durr, Ronald Taylor, Charles Gallagher, Tyrone Forman, Alex Lyon, and Jeane Flavin. In particular , I want to thank Eduardo Bonilla-Silva and Heather Dalmage for their indepth comments and questions on earlier drafts, which helped transform the work. Also my editor, Kristi Long, has been continually supportive and helpful. Since this research comes out of my own experiences, I need to acknowledge and thank everyone I have encountered who influenced me through our experiences, both good and bad. I want to acknowledge my school friends and community members in Rhode Island who taught me about white privilege and still provide subtle reminders of how opposition to interracial relationships works both knowingly and unknowingly. My undergraduate experiences at San Jose State University and, most notably, my relationship with my former partner Derrick Childs also provided me with insight. As an undergraduate, I routinely wrote papers on interracial marriage but was always left wanting more from the research that existed, which mainly looked to explain the couples through an analysis of their characteristics, motives, and relationships. While being biased myself, since I was involved in an interracial relationship and surely didn’t want to focus on our motives and characteristics, I still knew that the way others responded to individuals like us was as important, or probably even more important, than the couples themselves. This is what inspired me to interview other couples, to see what their experiences were, and to talk to other communities to see if the opposition I observed was individual or prevalent throughout society. Finally, this book would not have been completed without my parents, Joan and Charles Chito, and my sister, Sandra Chito, who have always provided me with support in many ways, financial, emotional, and, most of all, the care of my two children; my late brother, Christopher, who always challenged me to think and believe that I can and will; and my children, Christopher and Jada, who made me believe that challenging interracial borders is not only important but also essential. Acknowledgments xi Navigating Interracial Borders xii Acknowledgments ...