Maeve Higgins: Identifying as white in the made-up race racket

The myth of whiteness, and the presumption it is the 'normal' setting of humankind, could be creating a world of trouble

Arriving in the US, an immigrant can be startled by how swiftly he or she has to be 'raced' to live there. As an Irish person with pale skin, Maeve Higgins was determined to be 'white'.

There are lots of ways I would choose to define myself if asked; a menace, a treasure, an absolute doll, but it’s unfortunately also important to define myself by my race.

There are parts of the world where you could ostensibly live a long and happy life without knowing you have a race or ever realising what race you are.