Christina Milian Embraces her Afro-Latina Identity
Latinos come in different colors and sometimes face confusion when it comes to cultural identity. Christina Milian is Cuban and doesn’t look like the “average” light-skinned Cuban and she faces challenges being an Afro-Latina in Hollywood.
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“Since early, it’d be like, I’m Cuban but [people] didn’t get it because I was also brown-skinned, and you usually see a fair-skinned Latino, so it was just like, ‘Oh, what are you? Are you black? Are you white?'” she told HuffPost Live host Alex Miranda. “I didn’t feel like I had to make a choice. I am what I am.”
Afro-Latinos in the U.S. and abroad are often approached with skepticism, exoticism, and even discrimination. The fact that their skin is black and their hair is curly, complemented by the ability to speak Spanish, confuses many. They are shocked to learn that this person is speaking in Spanish, and this prompts questions on nationality, language, status and ethnicity.
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