Tia Mowry is a product of an interracial marriage — her mother is Black and her father is white. However, the actress-turned-entrepreneur identifies as a Black woman and not biracial.
“I identify myself as a Black woman,” Mowry said to The Cool Mom Code podcast host Lizzy Mathis in a recent interview. “My mother is Black, you know what I mean?… My mother is a strong woman…My mother is dark-skinned. I have seen and felt her struggles as being a Black woman. So to me, of course my dad is white, but I am an extension of my mother.”
To further clarify her comments, the mother of two added, “Yes, I am mixed race but it’s how I identify myself, and I identify myself as a Black woman. That is how I’ve been viewed. That is how I’ve been seen. And I remember studying in school that if you have a single drop of Black blood, you’re Black.”
Mowry’s mother Darlene is Bahamian, while her father Timothy is English and Irish. “That’s how we were raised and so that’s how I consider myself,” the Sister, Sister star added about her connection to Black culture. “I feel like that is my purpose. My passion in life is to be that representation for my community of diverse women and Black women.”
While on the topic of race, Mowry opened up about navigating Hollywood as a Black woman from a young age and being intentional with the roles she takes.
“It’s not just about being on screen, you know what I mean? I feel like it goes deeper than that,” she said. “I’ve learned at such a young age, and I will never forget being on stage at the ‘Nickelodeon’s Kid’s Choice Awards’ and seeing all of these kids screaming your name. I felt like I had a responsibility to basically, you know, have some sort of awareness that people are looking at me and I want to inspire.”
That level of responsibility carries over into her entrepreneurial efforts as well.
“Everything that I do now, whether it’s for wellness, I’m all about fighting for representation when it comes to Black women and their health, and being taken seriously,” she said. “As an entrepreneur, it is all about making sure that, you know, we are being represented in categories where we weren’t celebrated.”
You can check Mowry’s full interview on The Cool Mom Code Podcast below:
