Phillip Christopher Roberts
WHAT MIX ARE YOU?
African American
Korean
WHERE DO YOU CURRENTLY LIVE?
Dallas, TX
IS THE COMMUNITY YOU LIVE IN NOW DIVERSE?
Not that I know of, but I've seen majority of white people in my apartment complex. To everyone's defense I go to work at 5 am, and come back at noon so I rarely see anyone!
WHERE DID YOU GROW UP?
I am from Killeen, TX. It was really diverse there since it was connected to the biggest military base Ft. Hood. There were a lot of mixed kids there.
HOW DID YOUR PARENTS MEET?
My aunt actually introduced them to each other when my father was stationed in Korea.
WERE THERE ANY SIGNIFICANT OBSTACLES IN THEIR RELATIONSHIP CORRELATED TO YOUR BACKGROUNDS?
Surprisingly no since they weren't the super traditional Korean family. But most old school families think it's a dishonor to marry a person of color.
HAS YOUR EXTENDED FAMILY ALWAYS BEEN SUPPORTIVE OF YOU BEING BIRACIAL?
Another surprise here, my father's side of the family hates my mom and us and thinks that she isn't adequate to raise us. My mom’s side think we are amazing and can achieve a lot.
DID YOU CELEBRATE TRADITIONS FROM BOTH SIDES OF YOUR FAMILY?
We celebrated my 100 day old anniversary which is a traditional Korean thing, but other than that were just the normal American family.
WERE THERE MULTIPLE LANGUAGES SPOKEN IN YOUR HOUSEHOLD?
Not exactly. My mom never made me try to learn Korean but would teach me basic conversational pieces. She really pushed me learning English since she herself was learning it while I was growing up.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR CULTURAL BACKGROUND?
What I most enjoy is the food obviously, Korean food (not American Korean) is really healthy and I eventually turned into an athlete that does constant research on diets.
WHAT ACTIONS DID YOUR PARENTS TAKE TO TEACH YOU ABOUT YOUR DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS?
None. They were never specific, they taught me to respect everyone, my yes/no ma'am/sirs, no one is better than anyone, and be a good person.
DID YOU TALK ABOUT RACE A LOT IN YOUR HOUSEHOLD WHEN YOU WERE GROWING UP?
Never, we didn't try to make it a point since we were already living it.
DO YOU IDENTIFY AS MIXED OR SOMETHING ELSE?
I always said I was black and Korean, but as of late I just say it shouldn't matter because I try my best to spread positivity to all.
DOES RACE WEIGH INTO WHO YOU CHOOSE TO DATE?
No
WHAT DOES BEING MIXED MEAN TO YOU?
It's a very special thing. I have a lot of experiences that most people never get to see. You are honestly seen as 2 races and some things you should do or certain stereotypes. Since I'm Korean people say aren't you good at math, but I am also black so I get the “who's your favorite rapper” a lot.
DO YOU HAVE A LOT OF FRIENDS WHO ARE MIXED?
If we go down to the Census then no because most people have 2 mostly of the same parents. But like one of my friends is ¼ white so they never actually identify as white.
ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS YOU ARE REALLY TIRED OF HEARING FROM PEOPLE IN REGARDS TO RACE/CULTURE?
Not really. I would say the good at math thing gets old but no nothing really.
WHAT IS YOUR DREAM FOR THE FUTURE OF AMERICA IN REGARDS TO RACE?
I wish we could all have some sort of equality. It truly hurts my heart that I probably will have to tell my children to watch out where and how they play in the park because you never know what could happen.
ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO SHARE?
No, thank you for the questions but people can follow me on Instagram and Twitter or Facebook: Phillip Christopher Roberts