Multiracial and Multiethnic Identities

Interracial relationships have a long history in the Americas, including in the United States and Mexico. The interracial unions between Spanish settlers and native Indians in Mexico created a distinct group of people, called mestizos, which today make up the largest and dominant group of Mexicans. Interracial relationships have existed in the United States throughout its history, including between Blacks and Whites. Many famous African Americans, such as Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington, had White fathers who were slave owners and Black mothers who were enslaved. Although there were many Black and White relationships, in many Southern states, marriage between Blacks and Whites were illegal until it was made legal by the Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court decision in 1967. In the United States, ...