How much black ancestry makes you black?

Question

I have some black ancestry,and am possably one/sixteenth black,does this make you black.I am proud of my black ancestry.Besides that I am scottish/irish/creek/seminole/cherokee

Answer 1

The census bureau allows for more than four races now. But the race of mother is used in many statistical reports because the race of mother is more likely to be known than the race of father. California DHS still uses the race of mother to record fetal deaths. You are asking about the "one drop" rule of the past that says that if you have one drop of African blood, you are black. In the past this worked for obvious reasons, slave masters' offspring could not be considered caucasion due to racism and misengenation laws (laws outlawing sexual or marital relations between blacks and whites.) This led to the "race of mother" to determine race. However, that puts people like Halle Berry and Barack Obama in strange situations because their moms were white.  Halle Berry was not the second black woman to win an Oscar and Barack Obama won't be the first black president if he wins. They are both white. What race is your mother?

Answer 2

Since they say we were all originally from South Africa then surely that means we have all got a bit of blackness in us to some degree.

Answer 3

This is a question that is political.

After the Civil War, Southern states as well as some others had laws forbidding marriage between black and white.

In Louisiana, the Catholic Church, like all churches wanted to make sure their marriages were in accordance with Civil Law largely due to the laws of descent and distribution.  It could cause a problem for children.  They brought pressure on the Louisiana legislature to define a white man.

At first, it was going to be someone who was no more than 1/152 or 1/156 black.  One legislator from Orleans Parish who was either 1/76 or 1/78 black objected. Naturally since the white man had more status than the black man, he wanted to make sure when they were through he was considered a white man. So they defined it as someone who was no more than 1/76 or 1/78 black (can't exactly remember which).

Texas, for instance, never defined it but people usually considered anyone with any black ancestry as black. That is if they knew about it.  

One time a priest in the Galveston-Houston Diocese and had come from Louisiana had a couple that wanted to marry.  He contacted the Diocesan Chancery to do an investigation in their origins and was told, "We don't go there."

Answer 4

You are free to identify with whatever race you want to.  You can identify with all of them, if you please.  The idea of a person being solely identified as black, is the result of slavery.  Slave masters sexually exploited and raped black women.  They also did it as a way of increasing their "assets".  If someone has a drop of black blood they are considered black in this country.  I personally know people that are racially mixed, yet don't appear to have any African Ancestry.  Referring to them as solely black would be incorrect.

Answer 5

Only you can make you black. Nobody can decide what you identify as. As for the society unfortunately, you're black if you "look black", which is ridiculous, as there is no way of measuring something (race) that is purely subjective. If your proud, stay proud.

Answer 6

You're black baby!

Answer 7

As much as is needed to qualify for grants or scholarships geared for african-americans.  They all came out of the woodwork in H.S. when it came time to figure out how to pay for college.

Answer 8

Why do you even care?  I would be willing to bet that 99.9999...% of humanity has black ancestry somewhere in their backgrounds, considering that anthropologists believe that human beings first emerged from an area in or around Africa.  So, I guess that makes us all soul brothers under the skin.