Structural Influence on Biracial Identification

Using the 2000 U.S. Census when respondents could indicate more than one racial category for the first time, this book explores how urban environmental dynamics influence biracial identification. Incorporating several biracial pairings into the analysis, Rachel Butts studies racial integration and the various meanings of the word minority.

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Stemming from the 2000 Census when respondents could indicate more than one racial category for the first time in census history, Structural Influence on Biracial Identification is the first study of its kind to explore how urban environmental dynamics influence biracial identification in the United States.

Several different biracial pairings are incorporated into the analysis. Rachel Butts uses relative differences from each model to quantify the standing of each racial group on a multi-tiered racial hierarchy. Notably, Butts uses non-White biracial groups (indicating identification with two racial minorities) to contrast the meaning of ‘minority’ as a numerical construct with the idea of ‘minority’ defined by oppression.

The analysis successfully extends intergroup relations theory from the context of interracial marriage to the context of interracial identification. Much like interracial marriage has been used as evidence of racial integration in the past, Structural Influence on Biracial Identification presents a compelling argument supplanting interracial marriage with interracial identification for contemporary times.