Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsUnderstanding Racial AmbiguityWhy Racial Ambiguity Is An Experience We Should KnowThe Privileges Of Looking Racially AmbiguousThe Challenges Racially Ambiguous People FaceRacially Ambiguous People as Allies to POC GroupsA Unique Life Experience
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Understanding Racial Ambiguity
Why Racial Ambiguity Is An Experience We Should Know
The Privileges Of Looking Racially Ambiguous
The Challenges Racially Ambiguous People Face
Racially Ambiguous People as Allies to POC Groups
A Unique Life Experience
Close
Racial ambiguity occurs when a person’s racial background cannot be easily identified based on appearance or other characteristics. Racially ambiguous people may be perceived as bi-racial or multi-racial, but others may not be able to discern their specific racial background.
At a Glance
Racial ambiguity is the term for when a person’s racial background isn’t easily identifiable. They don’t appear to be what’s commonly called “monoracial,” or being of one race.
If a person appears to be racially ambiguous, you might think that they are mixed race, also known as multiracial, but not be able to tell which races are included in their background.
Often, racial ambiguity can be the result of having parents of different races, but this isn’t always the case; a person who comes from a monoracial background can occasionally appear racially ambiguous, too.
Racially ambiguous people may love not being clearly identifiable, or it might cause them great emotional pain. It may be their favorite physical attribute, or they may take actions to appear more monoracial. There is no universal experience of racial ambiguity.
There are, however, progressively more racially ambiguous people in our country, as we become a less segregated society open to finding love and partnership in any group. According to the U.S. Census, there was a 300% increase in the multiracial population of the United States between 2010 and 2020.
Sometimes, racially ambiguous people are thought of as the future of humanity, representative of what all people will look like at some point in the potential future when so much global pairing has occurred that monoracial people are no longer the norm.
The author as a child.Ariane Resnick
The author’s parents on their wedding day.Ariane Resnick
The author and her grandmother.Ariane Resnick
Racially ambiguous people may move through society wholly differently than people of discernable races. As we will address, this has both privileges and challenges.
In a society contending withracism, it’s important to be aware of the varied experiences of the population, and racially ambiguous people can teach people of identifiable races a lot about how nuanced and complex racial identity can be. While monoracial people may have a singular experience of race, racially ambiguous people often have many different experiences with it throughout their lives.
The Privileges Of Looking Racially Ambiguous
Racially ambiguous people may have a different experience with race than others who are of discernable races. The privileges of looking racially ambiguous can include:
How to Navigate Your Own Privilege
Inasmuch as racially ambiguous people may experience some privileges that others do not, they also are faced with many challenges. Difficulties arising from racial ambiguity may include:
It’s important to note that one of the biggest challenges of racial ambiguity is that the questioning and miscategorization of one’sethnicitymay have a negative impact on mental and emotional well-being.
How much responsibility a racially ambiguous person feels towards more marginalized people of color is different from person to person.
When a racially ambiguous person embarks on anantiracismjourney, they may be made aware of privileges they didn’t realize before. This could lead to them taking more actions to combat racism when and where they encounter it.
How to Cope With Black Racial Injustice
It is a common occurrence for racially ambiguous people to be spoken to in languages that they are presumed to know but don’t. This is because people of different ethnic groups in various countries might recognize them as one of their own.
A person may be spoken to in Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew, Hindu, and more. This is a complex situation because the racially ambiguous person may feel disappointment when sharing with the native speaker that they don’t know the language, and aren’t from their community.
Because racially ambiguous people are often asked the question, “What are you?” which is an inappropriate way to ask for information about someone’s racial or ethnic background, they are forced to think more about their identities. This can lead to more self reflection than the average person might otherwise embark on or work through in life.
Sometimes, people are so convinced that an ambiguous person is of their race that they don’t even believe the person when informed that they are not. Most people in life don’t have to convince others that they are the race, or races, that they are, but this is a frequent occurrence for racially ambiguous people.
Due to occupying an in-between space in society, racially ambiguous people may not have a built-in community, or camaraderie with strangers of their race. Within their own families, they can look different than other members, and if they have two monoracial parents of different races, their own parents won’t be able to resonate with their experience.
Increased exposure to racially ambiguous people can help lessen the tendency to view race purely in terms of “Black” and “White” categories. One study found that seeing more racially ambiguous people reduced essentialist, monolithic views of race.In other words, seeing faces that don’t clearly belong to one race helps them develop a more flexible idea of race.
Keep in Mind
Chances are, you’ve encountered racially ambiguous people before. You may have presumed them to be of one race, mixed race, or never given it any thought at all. With the information you now have, you can begin to have a deeper understanding of the experiences of racially ambiguous people. Racial ambiguity is becoming progressively more common and is an important experience to understand.
Working with mixed race individuals who may appear racially ambiguous is an important topic for further exploration. Verywell would like to thank Dr. Jennifer Noble for her significant contributions in reviewing this article. Dr. Noble is a licensed psychologist, parent coach, associate professor of psychology and speaker in Los Angeles, CA. She works with mixed race people, parents of mixed race kids, women of color, and other marginalized groups.
The Impact of Racial Trauma and How to Cope
4 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Grilo SA, Semler MR, Rameau S.The sum of all parts: A multi-level exploration of racial and ethnic identity formation during emerging adulthood.PLoS One. 2023;18(4):e0284275. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0284275Hsu P, Bryant MC, Hayes-Bautista TM, Partlow KR, Hayes-Bautista DE.Racially ambiguous babies and racial narratives in the United States: A growing contradiction for health disparities research.Acad Med. 2019;94(8):1099-1102. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000002740"Not Found. Query returned nothing useful. Maybe try a different identifier.“Levy A, Nguyen C, Slepian ML, Gaither S, Pauker K, Dovidio JF.Categorizing a face and facing a category: The constructive impacts of ambiguity and uncertainty in racial categorization.Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2023;49(6):910-924. doi:10.1177/01461672221084537
4 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Grilo SA, Semler MR, Rameau S.The sum of all parts: A multi-level exploration of racial and ethnic identity formation during emerging adulthood.PLoS One. 2023;18(4):e0284275. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0284275Hsu P, Bryant MC, Hayes-Bautista TM, Partlow KR, Hayes-Bautista DE.Racially ambiguous babies and racial narratives in the United States: A growing contradiction for health disparities research.Acad Med. 2019;94(8):1099-1102. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000002740"Not Found. Query returned nothing useful. Maybe try a different identifier.“Levy A, Nguyen C, Slepian ML, Gaither S, Pauker K, Dovidio JF.Categorizing a face and facing a category: The constructive impacts of ambiguity and uncertainty in racial categorization.Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2023;49(6):910-924. doi:10.1177/01461672221084537
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Grilo SA, Semler MR, Rameau S.The sum of all parts: A multi-level exploration of racial and ethnic identity formation during emerging adulthood.PLoS One. 2023;18(4):e0284275. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0284275Hsu P, Bryant MC, Hayes-Bautista TM, Partlow KR, Hayes-Bautista DE.Racially ambiguous babies and racial narratives in the United States: A growing contradiction for health disparities research.Acad Med. 2019;94(8):1099-1102. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000002740"Not Found. Query returned nothing useful. Maybe try a different identifier.“Levy A, Nguyen C, Slepian ML, Gaither S, Pauker K, Dovidio JF.Categorizing a face and facing a category: The constructive impacts of ambiguity and uncertainty in racial categorization.Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2023;49(6):910-924. doi:10.1177/01461672221084537
Grilo SA, Semler MR, Rameau S.The sum of all parts: A multi-level exploration of racial and ethnic identity formation during emerging adulthood.PLoS One. 2023;18(4):e0284275. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0284275
Hsu P, Bryant MC, Hayes-Bautista TM, Partlow KR, Hayes-Bautista DE.Racially ambiguous babies and racial narratives in the United States: A growing contradiction for health disparities research.Acad Med. 2019;94(8):1099-1102. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000002740
“Not Found. Query returned nothing useful. Maybe try a different identifier.”
Levy A, Nguyen C, Slepian ML, Gaither S, Pauker K, Dovidio JF.Categorizing a face and facing a category: The constructive impacts of ambiguity and uncertainty in racial categorization.Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2023;49(6):910-924. doi:10.1177/01461672221084537
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