The perfect gift for your favorite social science buff!
“Passing” For Who You Really Are
by A.D. Powell
Paperback, 136 pages, ISBN 9780939479221, $11.95
Twelve Essays in Support of Multiracial Whiteness
The Multiracial Movement
Self-Identity
Ethnic Choice
A.D. Powell has been declared an “unsung heroine” of American history in a Proclamation by the governor of Arkansas, dated August 24, 2005!
No spokesperson of the movement to abolish government sponsorship of the “race” notion has been more eloquent than A.D. Powell. She aims her barbs at Americans of all complexions who insist upon the one-drop rule. She is the nemesis of those who advocate the uniquely American notion that there is no such thing as a White person with African ancestry—that such a person is, at best, a “light-skinned Black.” Powell believes that the one-drop rule ignores science, crushes tolerance, and mocks the American Dream. And yet it is advocated by liberals, and its enforcement is demanded by most Black leaders. She argues that coercing someone’s ethnic choice is tyranny.
This collection of essays on multiracialism originally appeared in Interracial Voice magazine.
I found this book to be a fascinating treatise on race and ethnicity, or more accurately our perceptions on race and ethnicity. A.D. Powell takes a stand that, in essence, argues for each human being's innate right to identify with the ethnic culture and heritage, or heritages, that he or she chooses. While this may ruffle the feathers of some, it is a common sense approach to the outdated and oftentimes harmful American tradition of assigning all people to strict racial categories (that may or may not coincide with their own view of themselves). As Wayne Winkler points out, whether you agree with her or not, A.D. Powell's Passing for Who You Really Are will make you think long and hard about our long held disjointed notions of race. — Brent Kennedy, author of The Melungeons: The Resurrection of a Proud People : An Untold Story of Ethnic Cleansing in America.
A. D. Powell’s book of essays on the odious “one drop rule” is one of those rare works that will make you examine America’s—and your own—assumptions and attitudes about race. Whether you agree with these thoughtful pieces or not, they will make you think about some things you may have never considered before. Passing For Who You Really Are presents ideas that will stay in your mind for a long time to come. — Wayne Winkler, author of Walking Toward the Sunset: The Melungeons of Appalachia.
Should be required reading for “blacks,” academicians, “white” liberals and especially Latinos. — William Javier Nelson, sociologist and author of The Racial Definition Handbook.
I am glad someone is [publishing A.D. Powell], because there is so much crap being published by the university presses about the multiracial issue! — Francis Wardle, executive director of the Center for the Study of Biracial Children and author of the textbook Introduction to Early Childhood Education: A Multidimensional Approach to Child-Centered Care and Learning.
She reminds you of H.L. Menken, driving intellectual midgets into frenzies of outrage, a spectacle that entertains her fans. — Frank W. Sweet, historian and author of Legal History of the Color Line.
To discuss the book with the author, visit the OneDropRule discussion group.
Links to buy the book. Compare for best price.
You can also order this book in person at any major bookstore (including Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, and Borders). This title is stocked by Ingram Book Company, the world's largest book wholesaler and distributor.
Return to the Backintyme Publishing page (History of the U.S. Color Line).
Return to the Backintyme Performances page (Living History Songs and Stories).
Visit The Study of Racialism, a discussion group on the history of U.S. racialism (the “race” notion) sponsored by Backintyme Publishing.
