Transracial Mothering

The term transracial motherhood is used to define women whose children are socially classified as members of a racial group different from their own. While the literal definition encompasses women from all racial backgrounds, it is the experience of white women who parent nonwhite children, specifically children of African descent, that has been the focal point of existing scholarship. This is because in contrast to white women, women of color are regarded as symbolic of a distinctly racialized life experience based skin color and physical characteristics. Any biological children are believed to inherit her racial status regardless of their physical appearance or paternal heritage. For this reason, the concept of transracial motherhood is currently defined by the experience of white women who parent children of ...