May 3, 2003 - My daughter got a letter today from the local school district. It directed her to select which of five racial classifications fit her children. The choices were White, Black, Hispanic, Native American or Asian. Until this year she had selected no racial classification on the schools registration forms or had marked “Other” and filled in the blank with “human”. You see my grandchildren’s ancestry on their mother’s side is primarily centered in Scotland with an admixture of English adventurers, French Huguenot refugees, Silesian Pietist exiles, and Dutch traders. Her ancestors helped establish the first permanent settlements in Virginia and New Netherlands. We have had less success tracing their father’s genetic heritage other than the obvious African origin together with his family tradition that claims the addition of Cherokee and Creek genetic contributions. My grandchildren are descended from both slaves and slave owners. Until this year my daughter had avoided the impossibility of pigeon holing her children into one of the several threads of their genetic fabric and her election not to do so was respected by the school authorities.

This April she received a letter notifying her that the United States Department of Education would no longer accept other than those five categories listed in the letter. The letter explained that under the regulations issued by the Department under the President’s “Leave No Child Behind” act either the parents must choose a racial designation or the school district is required to place the child in one of the five approved designations. That requirement seems discordant with the Administration’s position that race based factors have no place in school administration. If race cannot be considered in the administration of the schools then what is the purpose of categorizing the student population into 5 rigid racial categories? If we are to believe in a color-blind society what is the purpose of placing children into racial pigeon holes.

Are my grandchildren White? Yes, unless you adhere to the Jim Crow “one drop of blood” rule. Are my grandchildren Black? Yes, unless you consider that their complexions are actually more of the color of café-au-lait. Are they Native American? Probably, if we can credit their father’s family tradition. . We can be relatively sure that their heritage has no modern Asian or Hispanic strain.

Neither of these children will need affirmative action to succeed in life. Both are strikingly attractive straight-A students who were raised in a home in which education is not just encouraged but expected. Both are accomplished musicians and gifted athletes. Both will be identified clearly by society according to the amount of pigment in their skin. If their mother chooses “Black” there will be more access to funding for the school district and more access to scholarship aid for her children.

Which would YOU choose?