Honorary Whites and Overlooked People of Color: The Racial Conundrum of Multiracial Americans and Asian Americans

ABSTRACT Multiracial Americans and Asian American populations are two of the fastest growing racial groups in the United States. Our article is the first to highlight three similarities that show how these groups are uniquely racially misunderstood: (a) both are subsumed under racial umbrella terms that obscure tremendous diversity, (b) both have been considered “honorary whites,” and (some type of) model minorities, and (c) both groups' status as people of color is often overlooked, despite increasingly well‐documented experiences with multiple forms of racial discrimination. We analyze the implications of dominant narratives that foreground privilege and camouflage inequality, including intra‐group marginalization. We conclude with suggestions for future research and recommendations for reconceptualizing existing frameworks for privilege.