Mixed Race Identity on Facebook

My research focuses on a Facebook group for mixed race individuals of Asian descent, known as “hapas”. I will use the group to answer the following three questions: 1) What are the narratives about Hapa identity that... [ view full abstract ]

My research focuses on a Facebook group for mixed race individuals of Asian descent, known as “hapas”. I will use the group to answer the following three questions: 1) What are the narratives about Hapa identity that emerge from conversations on this site? 2) How does this group function as a place of solidarity in the face of monoracial norms? 3) How do the affordances of the online forum shape constructions of hapa identity narratives? The particular affordances offered by Facebook makes it a particularly rich place for understanding the negotiation of identity and difference. I will answer these questions using a document review of the content posted to the group and comment threads as well as in-person interviews with group members. I will examine how individuals internalize and express everyday frustrations with misrecognition, often from encounters with others who they take to be characterizing them with normative mono-racial assumptions. I show how community critiques of difficult everyday encounters contribute to collective narratives around the mixed race experience. I will focus on the group’s “sense of place” for understanding how the virtual setting influences narratives and a sense of belonging.