Project Background 

This project emerged from a need to address the gap in a significant gap that persists in contemporary racial discourse surrounding racial mixing and mixed identities. The concept of mixed-ness is not merely a social or cultural phenomenon; it forms an integral part of racial systems and thinking, influencing both individual and collective identities. Racial mixing, whether through colonisation, enslavement, or forced migration, disrupts simplistic racial binaries. Yet, it remains consistently sidelined in mainstream academic discussions on race, perpetuating incomplete analyses of historical and contemporary racial dynamics.

The Global South provides invaluable insights into racial mixing, often overlooked in dominant discourses. In regions such as Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and parts of Asia, racial hybridity - expressed in terms like mestizaje and hybridity - has profoundly shaped societies. These realities are crucial for understanding how racialisation operates and how the legacies of colonisation and enslavement continue to influence identities. Despite their critical significance, these voices have largely been excluded from mainstream discussions on race and Blackness, which are often shaped by Eurocentric or Northern-centric frameworks.

This project seeks to bridge this gap by centering the voices and experiences of individuals from the Global South in the ongoing debates about racial mixing and Blackness. By convening interdisciplinary workshops that bring together scholars, activists, and practitioners from diverse fields, we aim to create a contemporary debate that advances a more inclusive understanding of racialisation and mixed identities. 

This project is the result of an international partnership between the University of Edinburgh and the Federal University of Sergipe, developed in collaboration with the Postgraduate Programme in Education (PPGED), the Postgraduate Programme in Science and Mathematics Teaching (PPGECIMA), and the Centre for Afro-Brazilian and Indigenous Studies (NEABI/UFS).

Mission and Objectives 

Our mission is to highlight and explore mixed-race experiences from the Global South. We aim to: 

• Encourage self-reflection through interactive exercises.
• Foster creative expression via poetry, drama, and narrative writing.
• Contextualize mixed-race identities within Brazil and South Africa's history.
• Develop a collective archive for academic and public engagement. 

If you have any questions or comments, please contact mixedracewritings@ed.ac.uk