60-minute presentation followed by 30 minutes of facilitated discussion.

Even after John and Yoko, and Heidi and Seal, interracial relationships are still considered taboo. Society’s discomfort is especially obvious in the media, where interracial couples are constantly exploited for eroticism or shock value. In this workshop, Carmen Van Kerckhove examines the historical origins of this tension and explore the common assumptions made about interracial couples. Carmen demonstrates that while race plays an undeniable role in shaping the dynamics within interracial relationships, it does so in far more complex and subtle ways than people may initially think.

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PowerPoint Slides From This Workshop:

University of Rochester
April 21, 2007

“That was one of the best seminars or talks I’ve been to, and I’m a junior already. I think it was really good because she did a really great job of creating a really comfortable space where people could share their opinions… She made it very inclusive in talking about interracial relationships. She didn’t just focus on one race or one orientation… Students were really engaged.”

Click the play button to hear an audio testimonial from Colette Carmouche, President of SHADES, the biracial and multiracial student group at University of Rochester.

Princeton University
November 17, 2006

“I liked how sensitive it was to pop culture because it made the issues very accessible… the presentation was very lively…”

Click the play button to hear an audio testimonial from Hannibal Person, co-founder of Princeton’s Union of Multiracial/Multicultural Students (UMMS)

“I think it was really successful. I heard tons of positive feedback from everybody that I talked to afterwards and everybody really liked it…”

Click the play button to hear an audio testimonial from Sian Ofaolain, co-founder of Princeton’s Union of Multiracial/Multicultural Students (UMMS)

Denison University
October 19, 2006

“It’s not a topic that’s really discussed at Denison, so it’s good to get people thinking about it. They bring in a fresh perspective… A lot of people enjoyed it, I’ve received really good comments about it.”

Click the play button to hear an audio testimonial from Sia Moua, social chair of Denison’s Asian Culture Club

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
February 10, 2006
“It really opened our eyes to things that we were doing unconsciously in regards to how we react to people of different races in relationships…”
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Swirl, Inc.
October 5, 2005
“I feel like I’ve been walking around with blinders on. The myths you presented really challenged me to be aware of these attitudes. Also, I feel challenged to pay attention to my own preconceptions about interracial couples.”
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Mount Holyoke College
April 3, 2005
“I highly recommend this workshop to any organization! This interracial relationships workshop is particularly well-suited for organizations that may not have dealt with multiracial issues in the past, since it draws a large crowd of individuals from many different racial/ethnic backgrounds. We enjoyed New Demographic so much that we plan to invite them back in the future to hold workshops during our multiracial awareness week.”
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Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
April 2, 2005
“WPI students told me they were glad they came to the presentation because it was interesting and something that is usually not talked about much at our school. I hope KSA continues to keep in touch with New Demographic so that they can come back to our school!”
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Young Korean American Network (yKAN)
September 1, 2004
“Interracial relationships affect all communities of color, including the Korean-American community. However, conversations about this delicate topic don’t just happen. There is still a lot of hesitation in bringing these kinds of issues up. It took presenters like Jen and Carmen to make the group feel comfortable with such an unspoken topic. Once the doors were open, it was clear that it was a long overdue discussion.”
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