The world mutt is a very disrespectful word and I feel it should not be used to refer to another human. We’re not dogs. A mutt is a mixed breed dog not a human that was lucky enough to be born unique. I want people to see people for who they are as a person and not stereotype them because of how they look. I want us to be more civilized with each other.

I think young people that are biracial should definitely get a chance to learn both sides of their culture, not only to widen their knowledge of what’s going on in the world but also to make them proud of where they come from. They can be proud of being part of this race and that ethnic group at the same time. They can break people’s stereotypes of different races and show how strong they can be, even facing obstacles of people bashing or misunderstanding them.

When I have kids I’m going to raise them the way I grew up, the way my Nana taught me. I’m also going to teach them to judge people by who they are as a person and not assume things based on the color of their skin.

Tags: biracial, growing up, merced, race, spotlight