Tiger Woods: Race Traitor or Visionary?

Reflections on Kamiya's "Cablinasian like me"

Tiger Woods has often been quoted, questioned, and criticized for calling himself "Cablinasian," a combination of Caucasian, Black, Indian, and Asian. The criticism comes largely from African Americans, who want Tiger Woods to take greater pride in his Black heritage and not become a "sellout." Even Colin Powell responds to Woods' remark by commenting that anyone who looks like him is Black. However, by calling himself "Cablinasian," Woods is not denying that he is not Black. Rather, he is saying that he is Black, proud to be Black, proud to be the honorary grandson of legendary golf player Charlie Sifford, but he is not just Black. He is stating that he is a rich mix of Caucasian, Black, Indian (Native-American), and Asian. "I'm just who I am," Woods told Oprah Winfrey, "whoever you see in front of you."

Does it matter if Woods is a single race or "Cablinasian" as he calls himself? What is the significance of him marrying a blonde white woman instead of a woman of color? Is Woods, a professional golf player well positioned with wealth and respect, "beyond race" by virtue of his societal status? While many people may condemn Woods' self-created racial identity, I personally applaud him for attempting to blur racial lines to affirm what he truly is in his own eye.


They -- we -- have learned to live and thrive within the difference, the racial divide, that so needlessly frightens America. Like them, America has a white parent and a black parent, and an Asian one and a Hispanic one too. It's time for Mother's Day. -Kamiya


Woods is a fascinating example of a melting pot culture in a mixed-race America. He embodies transnational and multicultural ties to a traditionally white sport, and a personal history embedded and crossed with the Vietnam War, African-American slavery, Asian Buddhism, minority exclusion and social agitation, all the while trying to accommodate masses of fans wanting him to be all things to all people. Whoever Woods may be, his refusal to place himself into a single racial category, his rebuttal of the one-drop rule, may point America to a more colorblind society. Woods is simply embracing his true identity and not letting other people dictate who he is. His identity, indeed, has no defined racial name. There are no set stereotypes associated with it yet. No one can justifiably evaluate him as this or that but who he is at face value: one of the top golfers of all time. By inventing his own "race," Woods stands for a greater reality: our race does not define us; we define our race. We can describe ourself and let our accomplishments (or lack thereof) become our stereotypes or associations. Our identities should be based on our attributes as human beings.

Although "Cablinasian" is certainly a reasonable race for Tiger Woods, calling himself a Black golf player will also serve some respectable purposes. He does not even need to say that he is proud of his African-American heritage. He only needs to say that he is a Black golfer. Much of the public and many of his fans already see him as a Black golfer purely based on phenotypical bases. If Woods embraced his Black identity, he will serve as an empowering force to inspire young Black golfers. As Woods had stated in a Nike commercial, "there are still courses in the United States that I cannot play because of the color of my skin." In becoming a top golf player despite the color of his skin, he will motivate aspiring Black players who have had to experience the same racial and social barriers Woods had to face in his move up the athletic honor ladder.