One aspect of Oralia's life that struck me as quite different was her family's quick acceptance of her future husband Julio Peralta. Based on the history and people discussed in the course and Julio's diverse background, I expected more opposition from his family. As we have seen throughout the course, acceptance of a spouse with a different appearance or complexion has not always been so easily accepted by families. For example, we can still refer to the case of Rachel in The Color of Water who was shunned by her family and even forgotten due to her intimate relationships with African Americans throughout her life. Some may argue that perhaps Julio's acceptance by Oralia's mother, father and family could have been due to Julio's Mexican origins which were similar to that of his mother who also lived in Mexico before immigrating to the United States United. However, as history has taught us, complexion has also often been an important factor in deciding whether or not an individual will be accepted into a family. This perhaps stems from social constructs such as the Spanish caste system in the 16th century which would separate Spaniards in the social order from the often darker individuals of the Americas. Perhaps due to social constructs such as the Spanish caste system, America's history has often shown us that in American society a lighter complexion often means an overall higher status in society, while a darker complexion is often associated with a lower socio-economic status. . As previously stated Oralia states that her family was skeptical about this relationship believing that Mexican immigrants often lived two lives, one in America with their girlfriend and one in Mexico with another family....... middle of paper... ...commons in American history discussed in this course. Both of these similarities and differences helped shape his identity as a mixed-race individual for the better. Bibliography Hodes, Martha Elizabeth. Sex, Love, Race: Crossing Boundaries in North American History. New York, New York UP. 1999. Print.Hodes, Martha. “The Fickle Nature and Constant Power of Race: The Story of the Transnational Family.” The American Historical Review 108.1 (2003): 84-118. Print.McBride, James. The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother. New York: Riverhead. 1996. Print.McIntosh, Craig and Gorden H Hanson. “The great Mexican emigration”. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 92.4 (2010):798-810. Sanchez, Georgia J. Becoming Mexican-American: Ethnicity, Culture, and Identity in Chicago and Los Angeles, 1900-1945. New York: Oxford UP, 1993. Print.