Even the most commonplace social interactions can get awfully dicey when race is involved. Enter Jenée Desmond-Harris, who writes the Race Manners advice column at theroot.com, helping readers sort through racially charged situations in everyday life. Jenée and I talked about her own background, the complexities of contemporary race relations and the predicaments we find ourselves in.A small sampling of the topics we discussed:

-Identity as a matter of choice

-Being biracial in America

-Talking to kids about race

-Aestheticizing and sexualizing race

-The racist uncle at the dinner table