Miri Song completed her PhD at the London School of Economics (1996), Masters in Social Welfare at the University of Wisconsin (Madison) and her BA in History & Literature at Harvard University (1986). Miri Song is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at University of Kent.
Research interests
Miri Song’s research interests include ethnic identity, ‘race’ and ‘mixed race’, racisms, migration (in its many forms) and immigrant adaptation. Over the years, she has been involved in British, European and North American research networks, including IMISCOE (International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion), the American Sociological Association, and the British Sociological Association.
Professor Song’s books include Multiracial Parents: Mixed Race Families, Generational Change, and the Future of Race (2017 NYU Press). She is also the co-author of Mixed Race Identities with Peter Aspinall (2013 Palgrave/Macmillan), Choosing Ethnic Identity (2003 Polity Press), and Helping Out: Children’s Labor in Ethnic Businesses (1999 Temple University Press). She has also co-edited a number of books.
Professor Song's current research project, 'Racial Identities and Life Choices among Mixed-Heritage People in the United States', is funded by the Russell Sage Foundation.
Our book, Race in the Family, is forthcoming with the Russell Sage Foundation in the US.
This project is carried out in conjunction with Professor Carolyn Liebler (University of Minnesota). As interracial unions and multiracial people are becoming more ordinary in the US, how important are racial and ethnic backgrounds to people with mixed racial heritage and their families? Thus far, while many studies have investigated the identifications of multiracial people, no studies in the US have examined their racial identifications, spousal choices, and their upbringing of their children. In this innovative study, they use their complementary research skills and parallel research interests to understand three intertwined aspects of the lives of mixed-heritage individuals from three distinct racial backgrounds using both qualitative interviews and quantitative analyses of census data.
They ask: How does a person’s race and ancestry responses link to their choice of spouse and the racial identification of their children? Does the answer to this question vary by location in the United States? Does it vary across different mixed-heritage groups?
Professor Song was the Guest Professor in Memory of Willy Brandt at the Malmö Institute for Studies of Migration, Diversity and Welfare (MIM), in Malmo, Sweden, in Autumn 2013, where she gave a series of research seminars. In Autumn 2017, she was a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Advanced Research Collaborative (ARC) at the CUNY Graduate Center, New York.
Editorial Board Member: journals
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
Ethnic and Racial Studies
Identities
Sociology of Race and Ethnicity (2018 to 2021)
Ethnicities (2015 to 2020)
Publications
BOOKS & edited BOOKS
(with C. Liebler, forthcoming 2025) Mixed Heritage in the Family New York: Russell Sage Foundation
Multiracial Parents: Mixed Race Families, Generational Change, and the Future of Race New York University Press, 2017
Global Mixed Race (co-edited with R. King-O’Rain, S. Small, P. Spickard, M. Mahtani) New York University Press, 2014
Mixed Race Identities (with Peter Aspinall) London: Palgrave/Macmillan, 2013
International Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Mixedness and Mixing (co-edited with R. Edwards, S. Ali, C. Caballero) Routledge, 2012
Choosing Ethnic Identity Polity Press, 2003
Rethinking "Mixed Race" (co-edited with David Parker) Pluto Press, 2001
Helping Out: Children's Labor in Ethnic Businesses Temple University Press, 1999
REFEREED JOURNALS
(2023) M. Song. ‘Super-diversity: it still packs a punch’, Ethnic and Racial Studies DOI: 10.1080/01419870.2023.2227693
(2023): M. Crul, F. Lelie, M. Song. ‘The bi-directional impact of a mixed union: people without a migration background in a union with a partner with a migration background’, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 49 (8):1996-2013
(2022): M. Song & C. Liebler. ‘What motivates mixed heritage people to assert their ancestries?’, Genealogy 6: 61. https:// doi.org/10.3390/genealogy6030061
(2022). K. Chong & M. Song. ‘“Interrogating the ‘White-Leaning’ Thesis of White/Asian Mixed-Race Individuals”, Social Sciences Special Issue ‘Multiracial Identities/Experiences in/under White Supremacy’ Soc. Sci. 2022, 11, 118. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11030118
(2021): M. Song. Who counts as multiracial?, Ethnic and Racial Studies, DOI: 10.1080/01419870.2020.1856905
(2020): M. Song. ‘Rethinking visibility and minority status’, Comparative Migration Studies 8: 5. doi:10.1186/s40878-019-0162-2.
(2019): M. Song. ‘Is there evidence of 'whitening' for multiracial people in Britain?’ Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, SI on multiracial people (eds. Dan Rodriguez-Garcia & Nahikari Irastorza), doi:10.1080/1369183X.2019. 1654163.
(2019) M. Song. ‘Learning from your children: Multiracial parents’ identifications and reflections on their own racial socialization.’ Emerging Adulthood,7, 119–127
(2018) M. Song. ‘A spotlight on ‘established’, versus ‘newcomer’ Americans’, Review symposium on The Other Side of Assimilation, Ethnic and Racial Studies 41(13): 2265-2271
(2018) ‘Why we still Need to Talk About Race’, Ethnic and Racial Studies 41 (6): May
(2017) ‘Generational change and how we conceptualise and measure multiracial people and ‘mixture’’, Ethnic and Racial Studies 40 (13)
(2016) ‘Can there be a truly systematic and comprehensive theory of race?", symposium on M. Emirbayer & M. Desmond, The Racial Order, Ethnic and Racial Studies 39 (13), 2303-2308, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2016.1202425
(2016) ‘Toward building a conceptual framework on intermarriage’, Sayaka Torngren, Nahikari Irastorza, and Miri Song, Ethnicities 16 (4), 497-520, Special Issue: Mixed Couples, Mixed Societies? Intermarriage, Modes of Integration and Social Cohesion, DOI: 10.1177/1468796816638402
(2016) ‘Multiracial people and their partners in Britain: Extending the link between intermarriage and integration?’ Ethnicities 16 (4):631-648, DOI: 10.1177/1468796816638399
(2016) Miri Song and Caitlin Gutierrez, ‘What are the parenting practices of multiracial people in Britain?’, Ethnic and Racial Studies, 39 (7):1128-1149, DOI: 10.1080/01419870.2015.1096411
(2015) Miri Song and Caitlin O’Neill Gutierrez, ‘Keeping the story alive: Is ethnic and racial dilution inevitable?’ Sociological Review, DOI: 10.1111/1467-954X.12308
(2015) ‘What constitutes intermarriage for multiracial people in Britain?’, American Annals of Political and Social Sciences, Special Issue edited by Dan Rodriguez-Garcia
(2014) ‘Raising the bar in analysis: Wimmer’s Ethnic Boundary Making, Ethnic and Racial Studies vol. 37, no. 5, 10.1080/01419870.2013.871310
(2014) ‘Challenging a culture of racial equivalence’, British Journal of Sociology, Vol. 65, issue 1
(2013) P. Aspinall & M. Song, ‘Is race a “salient” or “dominant identity” in the early 21st century: the evidence of UK survey data on respondents’ sense of who they are’, Social Science Research 2013, DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2012.10.007
(2012) ‘Making sense of “mixture”: states and the classification of mixed people’, guest editorial, Ethnic and Racial Studies 35 (4) 2012: 565-573
(2012) ‘Part of the British mainstream? British Muslim students and Islamic Student Associations’, Journal of Youth Studies 15 (2), 2012: 143-161
(2012) M. Song & P. Aspinall, ‘Is racial mismatch a problem for young mixed race people in Britain? The findings of qualitative research’, Ethnicities 2012, published online February 17, 2012,
DOI: 10.1177/1468796811434912, print: Vol. 12 (6) December: 730-753
(2010) M. Song & Ferhana Hashem, ‘What does “white” mean? Interpreting the choice of “race” by mixed race young people in Britain’, Sociological Perspectives, vol. 53, no. 2, 2010
(2010) ‘Is there a mixed race group in Britain? The diversity of multiracial identification and experience’, Critical Social Policy, vol. 30 (3) August, 2010
(2010) ‘Does “race” matter? A study of mixed race siblings’ identifications’, Sociological Review, vol. 58, no. 2, May, 2010
(2010) ‘What happens after segmented assimilation?’, Ethnic and Racial Studies, 33 (7), July 2010
(2009) ‘Is intermarriage a good indicator of integration?’, Journal of Ethnic and Migrant Studies, 35 (2): 331-348, 2009
(2009) D. Parker & M. Song, ‘New ethnicities and the internet: belonging and the negotiation of difference in multicultural Britain’, Cultural Studies, vol. 23 (4): 583-604, 2009
(2007) D. Parker & M. Song, ‘Inclusion, participation and the emergence of British Chinese websites’, Journal of Ethnic and Migrant Studies, vol. 33 (7): 1043-1061, 2007
(2007) ‘S’opposer a l’invisibilite publique: l’emergence des sites internet sino-britanniques’, Migrations-Societe, vol. 19, no. 113, Septembre-Octobre, 149-168, 2007
(2006) D. Parker & M. Song, ‘New Ethnicities Online: Reflexive Racialisation and the Internet’, The Sociological Review, vol. 54, no. 3, August, pp. 575-94, 2006
(2006) D. Parker & M. Song, ‘Ethnicity, social capital and the Internet’, Ethnicities, vol. 6 (2), June, 2006, 178-202, 2006
(2004) ‘When the ‘global chain’ does not lead to satisfaction all round: a comment on the Morecambe Bay tragedy’, Feminist Review, vol. 77, August, 2004, 137-140
(2004) Guest editor of special issue on racial hierarchy, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Vol. 27, no. 6, November, 2004
(2004) ‘Who’s at the bottom? Examining claims about racial hierarchy’ in Ethnic and Racial Studies, vol. 27, no. 6, November, 2004, 859-877
(2004) ‘Why aren’t the Chinese Black in Britain? Some thoughts on “integration” and “social exclusion”’, in KOLOR, vol. 3, no. 2, Antwerp, Belgium, 2004, 3-18
(2001) 'Comparing minorities' ethnic options: do Asian Americans possess "more" ethnic options than African Americans?', Ethnicities, vol. 1, no. 1, April, 2001, 57-82
(1997) 'Children's labour in ethnic family businesses: the case of Chinese take-aways in Britain', Ethnic and Racial Studies, Vol. 20, No. 4, October, 1997, 690-716
(1997) '"You're becoming more and more English": Chinese siblings' cultural identities', New Community, Vol. 23, No. 3, July, 1997, 343-62
(1997) M. Song & R. Edwards, 'Comment: raising questions about perspectives on black lone motherhood', Vol. 26, No. 2. Journal of Social Policy, 1997, 233-244
(1996) 'Changing conceptualizations of lone parenthood in Britain: lone parents or single mums?', European Journal of Women's Studies, Vol.3, No.4, 1996, 377-97
(1995) M. Song & D. Parker, 'Commonality, difference and the dynamics of disclosure in in-depth interviewing', Sociology, Vol.29, No.2, 1995, 241-56
(1995) 'Between "the front" and "the back": Chinese women's family and work experiences', Women's Studies International Forum, Vol.18, No.3, 1995, 258-98
CHAPTERS IN BOOKS
(2016) ‘The ethnic options of mixed race young people in Britain’, in (eds)Tracey Skelton, Nancy Worth, and Claire Dwyer, Geographies of Children and Young People, Springer. pp 1-17, doi:10.1007/978-981-4585-91-0_16-1)
(2015) ‘The British Chinese: a typical trajectory of “integration”?’, in (eds) Loretta Baldassar, Graeme Johanson, Narelle McAuliffe, Massimo Bressan, Chinese Migration to Europe, London: Palgrave Macmillan
(2015) ‘Does a recognition of mixed race move us toward post-race?’, in (eds) Karim Murji and John Solomos, Theories of Race and Ethnicity, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
(2014) (with Peter Aspinall) ‘Capturing mixed race in the decennial UK censuses’, in (eds) Rebecca King-O’Riain, Stephen Small, Minelle Mahtani, Miri Song & Paul Spickard, Global Mixed Race, New York: NYU Press
(2013) ‘The changing configuration of migration and race’, in (eds) Steven Gold & Stephanie Nawyn, The Routledge International Handbook of Migration Studies. New York: Routledge
(2012) ‘Mixed race’ Young People’s Differential Responses to Misrecognition in Britain’, International Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Mixedness and Mixing (co-edited with R. Edwards, S. Ali, C. Caballero) London: Routledge
(2011) David Parker and Miri Song, ‘New ethnicities and the internet: belonging and the negotiation of difference in multicultural Britain’, (ed) Claire Alexander, in Stuart Hall and ‘Race’, London: Routledge, 127-148
(2011) ‘The racial identification of “mixed race” young people in Britain’, in (eds) K. Hylton, A. Pilkington, P. Warmington, S. Housee, Atlantic Crossings: International Dialogues on Critical Race Theory, The Higher Education Academy, C-SAP, London: 131-153
(2008) ‘Mixed race siblings and racial identification’, in (ed) Martina Klett-Davies, Putting Sibling Relationships on the Map: A Multi-Disciplinary Perspective, London: Family and Parenting Institute
(2008) ‘Who are the British Chinese? An emerging sense of public identity via internet websites’, in (eds) Lucienne Germain et Didier Lassalle (dir.), Communauté(s), communautarime(s): aspects comparatifs, Paris : L'Harmattan, pp. 205-223
(2006) ‘Globalization and Gender’, in Handbook of Gender and Women’s Studies, (eds.) K. Davis, M. Evans, & J. Lorber, Sage, 185-195
(2004) ‘Racial Hierarchies in the USA and Britain: investigating a politically sensitive issue’, in Researching Race and Racism (eds.) M. Bulmer and J. Solomos, Routledge, 172-186
(2004) ‘Global and local articulations of Asian identity’, in Making Race Matter, (eds.) Caroline Knowles and Claire Alexander, Palgrave, 60-75
(2001) (with David Parker) 'Introduction: Rethinking "Mixed Race"', in Rethinking 'Mixed Race', Pluto Press, 1-22
(2001) 'Chinese children's work roles in immigrant adaptation', in (eds.) P. Mizen, C. Pole, & A. Bolton, Hidden Hands: International Perspectives on Children's Work and Labour, Falmer Press, 55-69
(1999) (with Ros Edwards and Simon Duncan) 'Social threat or social problem? Media representations of lone parents and policy implications', in (ed.) Bob Franklin, Social Policy, the Media and Misrepresentation, London: Routledge, 238-252
(1999) 'Class and trans-national identities: a Korean-American woman in England', in Christine Zmroczek and Pat Mahony (eds.) Women and Class, London: Taylor & Francis, 212-226
(1998) 'Hearing competing voices: sibling research', in Ros Edwards and Jane Ribbens (eds.) Dilemmas in Qualitative Research, London: Sage, 103-118
(1996) '"Helping out": young people's labor participation in Chinese take-away businesses in Britain', in Julia Brannen and Margaret O'Brien (eds.) Children in Families, Falmer Press, 101-113
INVITED TALKS & CONFERENCE PAPERS PROVIDED UPON REQUEST