Transracial? Celebrities Who Refuse to Identify With Race

Raven-Symoné, Tiger Woods and more.

Awkward Much? - The media firestorm over Rachel Dolezal this time last year, the white woman who passed herself off as Black for nearly a decade, was epic. The story raised questions of whether people can be "transracial," or adopt a race they weren't born into. Dolezal's case was by far the most extreme, but there have been a number of celebs before her who have made bold assertions about their race. From Jessica Simpson claiming she is Native American to Keyshia Cole's bi-curiousness, here are a few stars who have made us pause with their racial identity. (Photos from left: Amanda Edwards/Getty Images, Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images, Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic)

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Awkward Much? - The media firestorm over Rachel Dolezal this time last year, the white woman who passed herself off as Black for nearly a decade, was epic. The story raised questions of whether people can be "transracial," or adopt a race they weren't born into. Dolezal's case was by far the most extreme, but there have been a number of celebs before her who have made bold assertions about their race. From Jessica Simpson claiming she is Native American to Keyshia Cole's bi-curiousness, here are a few stars who have made us pause with their racial identity. (Photos from left: Amanda Edwards/Getty Images, Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images, Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic)

Jessica Simpson - America's favorite airhead got into a heap of trouble in 2009 when she called her ex Tony Romo an "Indian giver." Simpson snapped back that her words should not be considered offensive because she herself is Native American...a weak argument anyway, but made even more ridiculous when her people had to release a statement saying she is one-sixteenth Native American. A bit of a stretch, Jess.(Photo: Amanda Edwards/Getty Images)

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Jessica Simpson - America's favorite airhead got into a heap of trouble in 2009 when she called her ex Tony Romo an "Indian giver." Simpson snapped back that her words should not be considered offensive because she herself is Native American...a weak argument anyway, but made even more ridiculous when her people had to release a statement saying she is one-sixteenth Native American. A bit of a stretch, Jess.(Photo: Amanda Edwards/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods - Tiger Woods may be one of the most famous Black athletes in the world, but his ethnic makeup goes way beyond Black and white. The legendary golfer said back in the '90s that said he was "Cablinasian" — Native American, Thai, white and Black, telling Oprah that questions about his race have followed him his whole life. "It does [bother me]. Growing up, I came up with this name. I'm a 'Cablinasian.'"(Photo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

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Tiger Woods - Tiger Woods may be one of the most famous Black athletes in the world, but his ethnic makeup goes way beyond Black and white. The legendary golfer said back in the '90s that said he was "Cablinasian" — Native American, Thai, white and Black, telling Oprah that questions about his race have followed him his whole life. "It does [bother me]. Growing up, I came up with this name. I'm a 'Cablinasian.'"(Photo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

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Karrine Steffans - The Carribbean video vixen made waves in 2013 when she distanced herself from the Black community by saying that, as an islander, she doesn't share in African-American history or culture. "I don't have slavery in my family," she said, "I don't have African-American struggles. I just don't." (Photo: David Livingston/Getty Images)

Raven-Symoné - Maybe the most highly-publicized instance of racial confusion — before Dolezal broke onto the scene — came from Raven-Symoné. Speaking to Oprah Winfrey, the former Disney star stated that she doesn't "want to be labeled gay" before extending, "I'm not African-American — I'm American." Raven also says she is from "every" continent in Africa, except one. Okay, girl... Okay.(Photo: Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic)

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Raven-Symoné - Maybe the most highly-publicized instance of racial confusion — before Dolezal broke onto the scene — came from Raven-Symoné. Speaking to Oprah Winfrey, the former Disney star stated that she doesn't "want to be labeled gay" before extending, "I'm not African-American — I'm American." Raven also says she is from "every" continent in Africa, except one. Okay, girl... Okay.(Photo: Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic)

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Keyshia Cole - The singer caught some heat after wondering aloud on 106 & Park whether being biracial would exclude her from participating in Black Girls Rock! Cole later clarified her comments, saying she wasn't trying to deny that she's Black and, in fact, she wasn't even sure if she's actually biracial since she had never met her father. (Photo: Bennett Raglin/BET/Getty Images for BET)

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Keyshia Cole - The singer caught some heat after wondering aloud on 106 & Park whether being biracial would exclude her from participating in Black Girls Rock! Cole later clarified her comments, saying she wasn't trying to deny that she's Black and, in fact, she wasn't even sure if she's actually biracial since she had never met her father. (Photo: Bennett Raglin/BET/Getty Images for BET)

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Devyn Adbullah - The Bronx native, who was a contenstant on Naomi Campbell's reality modeling competition The Face, really put her foot in it during an appearance on The Wendy Williams Show. When the talk show host asked her if she had it tough as a Black model, Abdullah replied, "I don’t really consider myself as a Black girl model. I know what my ethnicity is, but I’m fair-skinned and I feel like I have an international look." Okay, Devyn ...  (Photo: Mike Pont/Getty Images)

Zoe Saldana - The Avatar actress identifies as a Black Latina (Saldana's heritage is Dominican and Puerto Rican), however, as she told BET.com 2013, she runs "away from people that use words like 'ethnic,'" and says there is "no such thing as people of color." Maybe Saldana transcends race! (Photo: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic)

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Zoe Saldana - The Avatar actress identifies as a Black Latina (Saldana's heritage is Dominican and Puerto Rican), however, as she told BET.com 2013, she runs "away from people that use words like 'ethnic,'" and says there is "no such thing as people of color." Maybe Saldana transcends race! (Photo: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic)

Vin Diesel - The Fast & Furious star consistently keeps us guessing when it comes to his racial background. His mother is English, German, Scottish, and Irish, and his adoptive father is Black. Diesel has maintained that he considers himself "definitely a person of color."(Photo: Michael Bezjian/WireImage)

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Vin Diesel - The Fast & Furious star consistently keeps us guessing when it comes to his racial background. His mother is English, German, Scottish, and Irish, and his adoptive father is Black. Diesel has maintained that he considers himself "definitely a person of color."(Photo: Michael Bezjian/WireImage)

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Carol Channing - In 2010, Broadway icon Carol Channing revealed in her memoir Just Lucky I Guess she was Black. Yeah, that had us scratching our heads, too. The Tony winner went on to explain her father was half Black, but when doing a quick Google search of her daddy — who looks 100 percent white — that seems a bit confusing as well. Still, if Dolezal has taught us one thing, it's that looks can be deceiving, so we'll take her word for it.  (Photo:  Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images)

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Teena Marie - While "whitewashing" is a common practice in entertainment today, the R&B singer went the opposite direction. Early in her career, Marie's handlers decided to downplay her race — she's white — to broaden her reach to the Black community. Personally, Marie never tried to hide or camouflage her racial identity — and, it turns out, it didn't matter. She was adored in the Black community for being her authentic, supremely talented self.(Photo: Barry Brecheisen / Getty Images

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Teena Marie - While "whitewashing" is a common practice in entertainment today, the R&B singer went the opposite direction. Early in her career, Marie's handlers decided to downplay her race — she's white — to broaden her reach to the Black community. Personally, Marie never tried to hide or camouflage her racial identity — and, it turns out, it didn't matter. She was adored in the Black community for being her authentic, supremely talented self.(Photo: Barry Brecheisen / Getty Images

Jean Toomer - If "transracial" does exist, Jean Toomer would be the perfect example. The author of the 1923 Harlem Renassiance classic Cane bounced for years between being Black and white, living in both Black and white communities and refusing to be "bound by race" while saying that he represented a "new mixed culture." However, on his last few census reports, he identified as white. We wonder if Rachel Dolezal studied him at Howard University?(Photo: Amazon)

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Jean Toomer - If "transracial" does exist, Jean Toomer would be the perfect example. The author of the 1923 Harlem Renassiance classic Cane bounced for years between being Black and white, living in both Black and white communities and refusing to be "bound by race" while saying that he represented a "new mixed culture." However, on his last few census reports, he identified as white. We wonder if Rachel Dolezal studied him at Howard University?(Photo: Amazon)