Expanding MultiCrit: Addressing Proximity to Whiteness and White-Assumed Experiences in Multiracial Identity

• In Event: Unmasking and Undoing Whiteness: Power, and Praxis across Educational Contexts

Abstract

This paper expands upon MultiCrit, a theoretical framework developed by Jessica C. Harris (2016), which offers a lens for researchers to make sense of Multiracial students' experiences in educational contexts. While MultiCrit successfully challenges monoracial paradigms and highlights the structural oppression faced by Multiracial individuals, it does not sufficiently address the complexities of whiteness within Multiracial identity, particularly in relation to proximity to whiteness and the experiences of white-assumed individuals. By integrating key concepts from Critical Whiteness Studies, such as white normativity, white ignorance, and white innocence, into the MultiCrit framework, this study aims to refine MultiCrit to better capture the nuances of Multiracial individuals' positioning within racial hierarchies, particularly within educational institutions. This proposal analyzes the foundations of both frameworks and theorizes how their combined use can serve as an emerging framework to advance the understanding of Multiracial experiences in research and practice.

Author

• Cassandra Renee Negron, University of Oklahoma