Adopting a New Identity for Advantage

Is it okay for someone to decide to be black, or African American? Is it okay for a black person to become white? We don't have a problem with boys becoming girls, so why have a problem with changing our race? I would hope that all people embrace themselves and love who they are, but not all people feel comfortable in their skin. I can't imagine feeling this way. But wait, we have certain rights for blacks, Native American, yellow, red and whites, ei. scholarships for college based on race, and "special" treatment by (some) police officers.

 I wouldn't mind being a black woman sometimes. They have a stereotype of, "I am a strong woman." But if a policeman pulled me over I would definitely want to be white. While shopping I would not want to be brown. White or black is good. In school, it would depend on the geographical region. In NM, being brown would be better. But being black in Utah is not. Being in a jungle fever relationship in the south, not so much. Being a white boy in Tennessee...you get the picture.

Women and men have a set of stereotypical ways they are treated by some in the work. Woman, don't be emotionally driven or else you will be looked at as a .... woman. Heaven forbid. In Interstellar Hathaway was driven emotionally and shot down for it. Brand argues in the film that love is a propulsive force, sending us in the directions we need to go. Sometimes we feel that we are tapping into that force of love; other times, it picks us up and forcibly pushes us toward the right decision or action. This isn’t unique to Interstellar; other sci-fi works ascribe much the same power to love, including the ability to manifest as a weapon and the power to induce self-awareness and evolution.
http://www.tor.com/2014/11/13/love-in-sci-fi-interstellar-speech/

Yet, men still decide to be woman and women decide to be men. Here is a quote from the 1850's.
  
And treatment in the workforce being a woman is not always equal.

Now to the racial identity part: 

And as you will read that one adopts a new identity if it is to their advantage. 

     I couldn’t help but think of Rachel Dolezal as I watched “Yellow Face” at Salt Lake City’s People Production. This winsome small theater supports African-American Theater in Salt Lake City.  “Yellow Face” should have a second run considering the unfolding of events in Spokane and the themes that are brought to light in a laugh out loud comedy directed by Kerry Lee. 

     Henry David Hwang, a Chinese-American playwright, won an Emmy in 1988 for “M. Butterfly”. He went on to write another play called “Yellow Face” in 2007 that grappled with his idea of racial identity. He used satire to reveal his comedic view of racial identity. By the end of the play it turns toward a serious question of “Who We Are”.  

     “Yellow Face” shows us how someone can accidentally take on another identity and use this to his advantage. This mixed up character hasn’t lied, yet hasn’t been truthful about his identity to his lover, friends, and employers. This may sound familiar with the headlines. However, integrity is at the base of revealing Marcus’s true identity in the play.

     Just as the sincere character in “Yellow Face” takes on Asian American rights, so does Rachel Dolezal. Can we blame her for fight for African American rights? She has a son that is half black. Her brother that she adopted is black. She has a vested interest in the NAACP.  Does that make it okay for her to take on a new identity? “Yellow Face” also address the flip side of being a racial minority. Just because Hwang is Asian, does he have to be an activist for Asian American rights?  I can’t go join a Native American Tribe and become a chief just because I identify as an Indian. Or If I was a Native American, do I have to take on an active role in bettering education on the Reservation.

     When we start pointing out who is what we are really only identifying with stereotypes. We have all done it and they have been here from the beginning but they also change.  Chinese Americans were once seen as uneducated and now they are identified as all being smart. White people can’t dance, and black can. Oops, that’s a fact. Stereotypes are funny in “Yellow Face”, but as Terri Lee has said, “They can be confusing.” Beyond the stereotypes is our heritage, we can’t erase that. It’s at our core imbedded in our soul.  

     When someone doesn’t love who they are or where they come from, that raises questions. Is it okay to choose our racial identity? If it isn’t, then why is it okay to choose one’s gender identity? Are interracial adoptions healthy for the child’s identity? If a child is in an interracial adoption, what is his racial identity?

     Cynthia Ann Parker, who was taken captive in 1836 by the Comanche, adopted the Comanche ways, and was essentially an Indian in her eyes. Did Rachel Dolezal take on another identity to survive her internal crisis of not being able to be herself? Where do we draw the line in the sand?  And Marcus G. was fooled into accepting his Asian identity in “Yellow Face”. Does that make it okay?  I thoroughly enjoyed the play and praise David Henry Hwang for being brave enough to tackle some of the themes he has in his plays, even amidst some of the uproar from his own Asian Americans. Let’s have “Yellow Face” back for another run!