I am: Jade
Country: United States
Age: 17
My Story:
When I was little, the fact that I was biracial never really concerned me. I guess I was too busy collecting Barbie dolls and playing dress-up. But, as I have grown up, my ethnicity has come to feel like a burden at times. My mother, who is Chinese, is often assumed to be my nanny. The Chinese kids in my school reject me for not being “Chinese enough.”
I’m currently graduating from high school, and trying to figure out what I want to do in college, and as a career. When I was filling out the “ethnicity” box on my SAT test I had three potential answers: “Asian”, “White” and “Other.” I felt if I chose “Asian” or “White” I was betraying half my identity. The word “Other” carries such a negative connotation, as if you don’t belong to anywhere. But I don’t necessarily feel connected to either my Chinese side or my Jewish side.
My Film: OTHER THAN ME?
More than 9 million Americans checked more than one race category on the 2010 census, a sign of a burgeoning multiracial nation.
Synopsis:
Most teenagers are struggling to figure out who they are, and their place in the world. My own path is complicated by my biracial background, and a lack of connection to either of my cultural backgrounds. My film will follow my exploration of the two sides of my identity, the Chinese side and my Jewish side.
