Mixed Kids Are the Cutest?

In the first installment of The Root's new Race Manners advice column, Jenée Desmond-Harris responds to a mother's question about comments on the superior beauty of her biracial children: 'Mixed Kids Are the Cutest' Isn't Cute?

"When it comes to remarks that are so obviously dead-wrong to some of us, and so clearly innocuous to others, there's often little energy for or interest in breaking down the explanation that lies between 'Ugh, so ignorant!' and 'Oh, come on, stop being so sensitive.' I'll try it out here. You're right to be bothered by the remarks from the Biracial Babies Fan Club. Here's why: These people aren't pulling an arbitrary appreciation for almond-colored skin and curls from the ether. Instead -- even if they are not aware of this -- they're both reflecting and perpetuating troubling beliefs that are bigger than their individual tastes. Specifically, while 'mixed kids are the cutest' is evenhanded on its face, treating both black and white (and all other ethnic groups) as inferior to your daughter, I hear it as anti-Black."

Read the full article here.