Shemar Moore Opens Up About Struggling With Identity As A Biracial Child: Where Do I Fit In?

Shemar Moore

Shemar Moore Opens Up About Struggling With Identity As A Biracial Child: Where Do I Fit In?

Shemar Moore is opening up about the challenges he faced embracing his mixed-race identity as a child.

In a recent interview with People, the S.W.A.T. star recalled grappling with existential questions from a young age, saying:

“Am I Brown enough? Am I Black enough? Do I walk the walk? I’ll never be White because I’m too Brown. How should I talk? How should I move? How should I dress? Where do I fit in?”

 

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Born to a White mother, Marilyn Wilson-Moore, and a Black father, Sherrod Moore, Shemar shared that his father—who was often subjected to racial slurs as a very dark-skinned Black man—faced significant struggles. His father’s challenges eventually led to imprisonment, prompting Shemar and his mother to move around the world in hope of escaping racial tensions.

Shemar Moore

Upon returning to the U.S. later in life, the 54-year-old credits guidance from his high school baseball coach and his mother for helping him embrace both sides of his heritage at a time when he felt pressured to conform. He reflected:

“I don’t apologize for being mixed. I’m a Black man. That’s the way society treats you. But I’m also half White.”

Adding:

“I am very much an African-American, but I’m also White and very proud of what comes with that. I honor African-American culture, the code, the cadence, the language, but I also stay in my lane and I don’t try to be something I’m not.”