“Black and White Twins” and the Social Construction of Race
By Lisa Wade, PhD | Originally Published at Society Pages. August 1, 2014, at 09:00 AM
Flashback Friday.
This remarkable newspaper article illustrates how skin color (which is real) gets translated into categorical racial categories (which are not). The children in the images below — Kian and Remee Hodgson – are fraternal twins born to two bi-racial parents:
The story attempts to explain the biology:
Skin colour is believed to be determined by up to seven different genes working together. If a woman is of mixed race, her eggs will usually contain a mixture of genes coding for both black and white skin. Similarly, a man of mixed race will have a variety of different genes in his sperm. When these eggs and sperm come together, they will create a baby of mixed race. But, very occasionally, the egg or sperm might contain genes coding for one skin colour. If both the egg and sperm contain all white genes, the baby will be white. And if both contain just the versions necessary for black skin, the baby will be black.
Fair enough.
But then the journalist makes a logical leap from biological determinants of skin color to racial categories. Referring now to genes for skin color as “black” and “white” genes, she writes: “Baby Kian must have inherited the black genes from both sides of the family, whilst Remee inherited the white ones.” And, of course, while both children are, technically, mixed race*, the headline to the story, “Black and White Twins,” presents them as separate races.
We’re so committed to racial differences that the mother actually speaks about their similarities as if it is surprising that twins of different “races” could possibly have anything in common. She says:
There are some similarities between them. They both love apples and grapes, and their favourite television programme is Teletubbies.”
This is also a nice example of a U.S.-specific racial logic. This might not have been a story in Brazil at all, where racial categories are determined more by color alone and less by who your parents are. It is not empathyeducates – “Black and White Twins” and the Social Construction of Race:
