by Kendall Williams
“For LaShawnte: Sing a Black Girl’s Song”
by Yaba Blay
On Sunday December 9th, CNN aired the latest installment of their annual Black in America series reported by Soledad O’Brien. This year’s special, entitled “Who is Black in America?,” focused on colorism and racial identity and the intricate intersections between the two. We watched young adults grapple with questions of their identity, namely the question of “What are you?” – a question not only asked of them by others, but one that they continue to ask of themselves. This is a question I myself have never had to think about, much less articulate an answer to because the color of my skin is reflective of my Ghanaian ancestry. By its dark tone, everyone I encounter knows exactly what I am.
“When No One Else Looks Like You.”
(CNN) – “Who is Black in America?” explores how color affects identity. In this video, Danielle Ayers, a Biracial woman, discusses her search for identity and the challenges of being color blind after growing up in a primarily white Mennonite community where race was not discussed. Watch video here
“Am I Black?” – A Response to CNN’s Black in America 5
by Tatiana Bacchus
Tonight I took my daughter to an advanced screening of CNN’s Black in America 5 – Who is Black in America? I went for a variety of reasons, but most of all to support a Philadelphia scholar and visionary, Dr. Yaba Blay. I had the pleasure of producing an interview of Yaba a few years back for the Leeway Foundation It was then that I learned about her project entitled 1ne Drop which refers to a person being categorized as Black if they had one drop of Black blood. I became an instant fan and student of Yaba’s work. (I am now a fan of the rest of the amazing individuals featured in this documentary.)
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“Legacy of ‘one drop rule’ inspires search for family history”
by Don Lemon, CNN
You never know from where inspiration will come.
I am often envious of my friends who can recite stories about ancestors that have been handed down through generations. I can’t do that. As a descendant of slavery in America, that hasn’t felt possible for me. Truthfully, I didn’t think about it much until a few weeks ago, after I was asked by CNN’s In America team to write about the impact of a mixed racial background on my life, the idea that “one drop” of black blood makes you black.
“What does Blackness look like?”
by Yaba Blay for CNN
I always thought I could spot a Black person anywhere. My eyes were trained in New Orleans – home to a historically preeminent group of folks who self-identify as “Creoles.” Many of them would make it a point to announce that they are different—not White, not Black, but “Creole.” A mix of African, Native American, French, and sometimes Spanish heritage, some Creoles are light-skinned enough to be mistaken for— or “pass”—for White people. We call them “passé blanc.”
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