3 ms·

Am I right in the thought understanding ‘hafu’ is a term for a mixed race person? If so I agree with you (I wrote the article) that it’s terribly difficult to t

Am I right in the thought understanding ‘hafu’ is a term for a mixed race person? If so I agree with you (I wrote the article) that it’s terribly difficult to talk about for the exact reasons you’ve said: you don’t want to offend anyone. It ended up being a huge part of my life and I have only really been coming to grips with it all, personally, in the past 5 or so years. After 30 years of not really understanding myself or my place in the world. I just wanted to post this to try and start a discussion about it as I do not think it is something which is considered very much in our ever increasingly polarised worldviews.

wrp 4y ago
"Hafu" originated as a Japanese term for half-Japanese persons, though usage has spread to other cases. I chose it because most terms used for mixed-heritage people have derogatory connotations but "hafu" leans somewhat positive. When I listen to these students, the core complaint I hear is that they feel there is no social group where they can feel completely accepted. I'm afraid my advice may sound either trite or unrealistic, but it's really the only thing I can think of that could have been done to better their social experience. I have a story to illustrate how social difficulties can come from a direction you don't expect. I have a Korean colleague who went to France for her sabbatical year, taking her grade-school son. When they returned to Korea her son apparently displayed "French" behaviors which led to his classmates ostracizing and bullying him. My colleague resolved the problem by transferring her son to a school in a more affluent neighborhood where the kids did not perceive him as odd.