Sigh....

I am not one for political correctness. I really am not, but today, I found myself in want of it. Badly.

BH is a charming young boy. He is so engaging and thoughtful. When I pick him up from summer day camp every day, one of the teachers, who is my age, just goes on and on about the silly things he says. I love it.

Today, however, not so much. She stops me as I am driving away and asks me to roll down the window. The boys hear all of this. Here goes:

Her: I have this friend. She is *whispers* white. Her husband is *whispers* black. (I am already irritated by that alone. Race isn't a something that is so secretive we have to whisper for good gravy's sake!). So ummm.....that makes her kids *whispers* mulatto.

I am just nodding as she talks about how the hair is so different of their kids, and how great they are. I am just nodding away yet kind of just irritated inside. I don't correct her at all because she is trying to be nice. She is irritating me, but she is trying to be nice.

Why am I irritated?

*Never, ever do we whisper whether someone is black or white. Be proud about it. I am proud to be white, of Scottish descent. Period. I am so proud of my children and their African descent. Out loud.

*If you want to be truly politically correct, you say African American, or Anglo American. I say white all the time, but I never say black. I always say African American. Am I trying to avoid offending someone? No. I am trying to teach my kids how to be respectful of their race.

*Also, cross racial relationships don't need to be whispered about. None of these things she was referring to need to whispered about! Think about the impression that will leave my kids with if they think every time their race is brought up, it needs to be whispered about, especially from a teacher!

*I never ever say mulatto. Why? Well the Anglo definition of mulatto means "the first-generation offspring of a black person and a white person" from Merriam Webster. Keep looking at the etymology of the word which is "Spanish mulato, from mulo mule, from Latin mulus".

Now here is where African Americans get offended by the word "mulatto". The meaning of the word mule means " a hybrid between a horse and a donkey ; especially : the offspring of a male donkey and a mare". And we can all imagine how that would make us feel if we were thought to be mules. I don't like the word myself, never have.

*What is the correct word? It isn't hard. Bi-racial. It's a nice word because it can meaning any kind of cross racial relationship that results in offspring, and it doesn't have an etymology that makes me cringe.

And there you go. It isn't hard. But in three sentences, I was done with that conversation. Just a thought.