by Michael Goodloe (Author), Dicarie Williamson (Contribution by), Sara Leone (Editor)
What does it mean to live between identities in a world that demands clear definitions?
In The Blackapino, Michael Goodloe offers a powerful and deeply personal memoir about navigating life as both Black and Filipino in America. Through honest reflection and lived experience, he explores racial ambiguity, belonging, and the quiet tension of existing outside rigid cultural categories.
From childhood to adulthood, Goodloe examines family, culture, and the realities of a mixed race identity, revealing how perception shapes opportunity, relationships, and self-understanding. As a Black Filipino navigating predominantly white and Black spaces, he confronts the pressures of code switching, workplace identity, and the constant question of "what are you?" These moments-often subtle, sometimes confronting-form the emotional core of this memoir.
More than a personal story,
The Blackapino speaks to the broader Blasian experience and to anyone who has felt unseen, misidentified, or asked to choose between parts of themselves. This is a thoughtful, resonant exploration of identity, culture, and the courage it takes to belong without erasing who you are.