Warp wrote:
> alphaQuad <alp### [at] earthlinknet> wrote:
>> America's First Black President.
> 
>   I don't really get it. Does having *one* of your parents black make
> you also black? Why is it ok to say he is black, but it would sound
> strange to call him white? Is white ancestry "less hereditary" than
> black one?

In this country it is, yah.

"Black" was defined legally as having at least one "black" 
great-grandparent. (I.e., 1/8th black was "black".)

I'm not saying those values are good or bad or anything, or even the 
reason why folks say he's a black president instead of a white or 
mulatto president. If you have 40 all-white presidents, then one 
half-white half-black president, the tendency is to call him "first 
black president," I think.

Oddly enough, some people argue that he isn't black because his parents 
were actually born in Africa. Hence, his ancestors didn't do the while 
slavery deal (at least not in the USA), so he isn't black.  (His 
response to the argument was "Please inform the taxi drivers in New York 
City of that." :-)

-- 
   Darren New / San Diego, CA, USA (PST)
     "That's pretty. Where's that?"
          "It's the Age of Channelwood."
     "We should go there on vacation some time."

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