What happens when two people, from two completely different societies, come together to form a family? They end up with biracial children. Biracial children grow up learning about two different ways of life, and the same can be said for biracial children of Qatari fathers and western mothers. Socialization plays a major role in the their lives and this blog will give you an inside look on the secret lives of the Qatari-Western community here in Qatar.
As a biracial Qatari myself, the concept of socialization applies differently to the way of life that I, and the rest of the half-and-half community, lead. The society that biracial children live in doesn’t necessarily reflect the person that they truly are. They are neither nor, they are a hybrid of some sort, so how can identifying with one society apply to them? I think that it does, except twice! They are taught to identify as Qatari, but are also encouraged to embrace their western way of life too.
Internalization is the tricky part of being biracial. One parent teaches them Arabic, while the other teaches English, but which one do they identify themselves with? The answer is both. It’s not a black or white situation; it’s a lot of grey. Social norms of both cultures are very different, and for an individual to live a life different from everyone else around them isn’t easy. I remember having a bedtime all through primary school, and not realizing I was the only on who actually had one! All the other girls at school didn’t even know what a bedtime was. Hence, social norms can differ and cause some awkward moments growing up not realizing you’re not the same as everyone else around you.
There comes a point when role taking kicks in and individuals are aware that they don’t exactly fit in. The video above demonstrates role taking in people who are half black and half white, the same applies to those who are half Qatari and half western. You know you’re not the same as the rest of those who around you, and you know that you’re different. When an individual form both races realizes that the way they look and the way they behave can be perceived differently, that’s when reality hits them. For example, I am very fair compared to other Qatari girls, and I never fully understood why they didn’t see my physical appearance as similar to them, or accept me as one of their own until I stepped out of my own skin and saw myself the way others saw me.
Being biracial isn’t a negative thing. It is something to be proud of, and sociology helps shed light on how socialization can be twice as interesting when two societies are involved in bringing up a person. At the end of the day, a person is who they define themselves to be, and if who they are is someone who is part of two different societies then so be it.
