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multiracial

SNAPSHOT: a true story of love interrupted by invasion

Fusing words, dance, music and film this story chronicles the quest of a mixed-race daughter from Southern Appalachia who eventually finds her homeless Vietnam Veteran father suffering in Hawaii. SNAPSHOT was nominated for BEST ACTRESS at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, special selection at: Cape Town Festival South Africa and International Women’s Festival Tornio Finland and recipient of: Brooklyn Arts Council Individual Artist Grant, and Kentucky Foundation for Women Arts Meets Activism Grant. See the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdNsYF6UJro

West Virginia PBS premiere Sunday November 10 at 8pm and Tuesday November 26 at 9pm

 

Find out more about this storyteller at: www.mitzisinnott.com

Lionsgate Buys Interracial Comedy Pitch

 

from indiewire.com

from indiewire.com

Gary Anthony Williams  and Jeannie Roshar are an interracial writing team (who also direct and act). They co-founded the LA Comedy Shorts Festival, which premiered the short film I Own You – about the ups and downs of interracial love. They have now sold the film as a feature to Lionsgate (the company that brought us Crash, Precious)

Here’s a plot synopsis of the film, written by Roshar:

Ronnie, an African-American man, and Betsy, his Caucasian wife, are shocked to learn that in the 1800’s, her family owned his in slavery. At first, Ronnie brushes it off, but then an ax, a dashiki, Oprah Winfrey and a cotton ball cause him to look at his wife in a whole new way.

We’ll be keeping track of the film here on our blog. Let us know if you had a chance to see the short and what your thoughts are! We at MixedRootsStories.org are cautiously optimistic.

Black Coral : A Daughter’s Apology To Her Asian Island Mother

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“Why the title Black Coral? “Locating my family has been like finding Black Coral. Black Coral lies deep within the coral gardens of the tropical deep waters and sea. It is exotic and rare, most precious in color above all other varieties, and often threatened by harvesters wanting to exploit it. Black Coral is often found embedded within the warm waters of the Philippines, the Caribbean and Africa—Black Coral grows in caves under ledges where light is dim; it thrives in the darkness. It grows like trees up from the ocean floor as precious as ivory and pearl.””

Find out more about author C.D. Holmes Miller and her book on her website http://cdholmesmiller.com.

 

Does your family “match”?

NPR’s Code Switch blog does it again.

This story was hitting the headlines across the country.  Journalists were interviewing families whose children had disappeared, thought to be kidnapped, asking them if they thought this could be their child.  Meanwhile, they were showing pictures of the couple that this little girl was found with…and she looked like them…other than the fact her skin and hair was lighter.  Then we find out…they ARE her parents!!!

Code Switch brings to light that this is not the first time that this has happened to a Roma Child.

This happens in America too…Families do not always MATCH!  Interracial families and families who have transracial adopted children are who first come to mind of families that might not visually always look the same. But families come in a variety of different sizes, shades. and make ups.  We must be cautious with first impressions on our ideas of what is a “family” and what “family” looks like.

 

http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/10/25/240865629/roma-children-removals-make-us-wonder-what-family-looks-like?sc=ipad&f=1001

Growing Up Mixed in San Francisco

Julie is scheduled to publish her book Growing Up Mixed in SanFrancisco by the end of 2014. Julie believes positive words, thoughts and actions leads to success.  Those are the things she can control and she chooses to have a positive response to situation, challenges and obstacles she faces.

Find out more about her story through her book and read her blog posts on her website http://www.juliegramlich.com/about-me/

 

Watermelon Sushi

Yayoi L. Winfrey filled out our ‘promote your story link’ to promote her film Watermelon Sushi. Let us know if you have any projects you’d like us to promote!

“Michiko Johnson looks Asian. She says she’s black. A hip-hop head, soul sistah who greases on greens and cornbread, Michiko is outspoken about her African roots. She adores her younger sister, April, whose physical features are more African than hers. But April speaks fluent Japanese and eats only vegan meals with chopsticks.”

“Told against the backdrop of the rising rap music scene of the early 1980’s,Watermelon Sushi plans to feature old school rappers like Chuck D, Kool Mo Dee, LL Cool J, Afrika Bambaataa and newcomers like Japan’s superstar enka singer, Jero-san.”

In addition to being in film production Watermelon Sushi is an art exhibit series, a blog, and book of photos/poetry/illustrations “Watermelon Sushi: The Story of a Black Girl and Her Japanese Mother.”

http://www.watermelonsushi.com/

Eartha Kitt – Never Finds Her White Father

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The beautiful Eartha Kitt!

Did you know: She didn’t know her actual birthday until she was 71? She never knew who her father was?

Once she finally discovered her birth certificate she was allowed 15 minutes with it and her father’s name was blacked out.

Kitt died in 2008.  Her daughter said:  “She carried the scar of her rejection with her all her life. She was rejected for the colour of her skin ironically by both black and white.” Her daughter goes on to say: “To some extent, I think my arrival completed her because it gave her a family that she never had.”

Our mixed roots stories might have rejection, secrecy, and pain…telling and sharing our stories can provide healing.

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/19/eartha-kitt-suffered-over-identity

Multi-talented Performer Alejandro T Acierto

Alejandro T. Acierto is an award winning performer.

“Alejandro T. Acierto is a musician and interdisciplinary artist whose innovative work in contemporary music, performance art, and art installation has led Time-Out New York to call him a “maverick.” He employs a multi-media aesthetic integrating music, sound, performance, and installation that explores notions of fluid identities and the slippages of cultural definitions.”

His next performance, Suspicious Package, is October 26th at 7:30pm in Brooklyn, NYC.

He will be in Saint Paul, MN November 5th and Chicago, IL  Nov 8th.

Learn more about this storyteller and his future performances at

http://alejandroacierto.com/