Have you ever been out with your child and been referred to as your child’s nanny? How does that make you feel? What about when you travel with your child, do you get asked whose child that is?

I know this is an issue too many parents of biracial and/or multiracial children face. I also know what goes on in your mind when people ask you whose child that is and the shock on their faces when you tell them they’re yours. As much as we hate to admit it, we are all slightly prejudice and no one is excluded. What sets us apart from one another is the level of prejudice that exist’ in our thoughts and behavior.

Until I had my son I too would occasionally wonder if the adult taking the little boy or girl out was the nanny or the parent. When my son was born he looked like he was mixed with a little Chinese. He outgrew those looks and has gotten really dark now. It also doesn’t help that we share a different last name so when we travel overseas, it gets a little tricky. I plan on having the same last name with any of my future children. Alas I digress…let me get back to the subject matter.

If you are a parent of a biracial or multiracial child who looks more like your partner’s race…do you respond to questions about your child’s appearance from the perspective that the person asking is ignorant or do you get offended? Granted, you do not owe anyone an explanation but the question arise at some point in time. Even if they do not ask, they give you that look and we all know what that look indicates.

I believe the worst situation arises when all of your biracial or multiracial children have different looks (skin tone). I found some articles online that deal with this topic in more detail. Click on the links to read the full article(s).

“Is that your child?” is a question that countless mothers of biracial children in the United States encounter whether they are African Americans or European Americans, rearing children today or a generation ago, living in cities or suburbs, are upper middle class or middle class. In our forthcoming book we probe mothers’ responses to this query as well as their accounts of other challenges and rewards of parenting biracial children.

In the 2000 census, 2.4 million people described themselves as more than one race, 784,764 people classified themselves as both Black and White, and these numbers are actually under-representative. Many people will choose to only identify themselves as only one race leaving the true number of bi- or multiracial Americans a mystery to match the Sphinx.

I posted this blog post because I don’t want any parent to feel they are the only ones who go through some of the ‘pains’ of raising biracial or multiracial children. There are thousands if not millions of parents who have gone through or are going through the same situation as you. One advice I do want to pass on is for you to connect with other moms and/or dads in your area who are also raising biracial and/or multiracial children. Sharing and hearing the experiences of others will help you deal with certain situations a lot better.

I hope the article: Is that your baby? I’m not the nanny! has been helpful to you. Don’t forget to check back here for new posts.

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• Open Thread: Are Biracial Actresses Overlooked? Jasmine Guy and Juliette Fairley Think So (clutchmagonline.com)
• Essortment.com
• Biracialmeetup.com
• Cafemom.com