Mixed & Woke

Hello!

My name is Chaunté, and thank you for coming to check out my page. I chose the name Mixed & Woke for a lot of pretty obvious reasons. One, I come from a very blended family, and I myself am very racially mixed, if ya know what I mean, wink wink. And two, a lot of my ethical beliefs would also probably be labeled or demonized as “woke,” like that’s somehow a bad thing.

Coming from a blended and racially diverse family doesn’t mean I was somehow untouched by racist beliefs, racial bias, or even my own internalized racism. I think a lot of mixed kids grow up in this weird gray area where we can hear family members attack, look down on, or make fun of a culture or group that we are also a part of.

And sometimes we don’t just witness it, we participate in it too, because we’re raised with ideas like “I don’t see color,” even though the rest of the world very clearly sees the color that we are. That can make identity complicated. You can grow up loving all sides of your family while also having to unlearn some of the things you heard, believed, or repeated along the way.

My goal for this page? To be honest…I’m not sure.

But I know I want to be honest. I know I want to write and share my experiences as a mixed individual. I know I want to use my privilege to bring attention to the systemic issues other black and brown people face. I know I have a voice, just like many, and I want to give that voice a chance because like I’ve been told by many white people growing up, “You speak so well”.