A DARKER SHADE OF WHITE

  

Justin Jaraiwoo and wife, St. Lucia,
in the nineteen fifties.
Photo courtesy Richard Cheddie.

    ■ There are many American whites who were mixed with Afro, but over generations their outward physical Afro strains were lost and they look pure white.

    It is only in the past 15 years that some of them have researched and found their African roots. Some are (re)connecting to their Afro relatives.

    A famous English family named Mills were among the first to settle in Richmond Hill, Queens, NY before the War of Independence. In fact, George Washington stayed at their home on 129 Street and 95 Ave during his campaign.

    The family's two sons had kids with their slaves, and the mulatto offsprings had kids with the Mills white cousins.

    Eventually with all the breeding by and between the mulatoos and whites, the offsprings turned completely white-looking!

    Some had kids with native Indian tribes as well and so so and so on.

    The bottomline is these people had huge farms and their community was somewhat isolated so there was never fear of social stigma.

    One of the Mills descendants indicated that Geoge Washington fathered many kids by slaves.

    People can choose to be who they are but never what they are. What do Sikhs mixed with Native Indian, White and Mexican call themselves?

    There are many African slaves descendants who are mixed with Native American Indian, Chinese and/or Indian, but they will identify with Afro.

    In some countries Douglahs (called 'Batazendien' in the French West Indies) are perceived by both Indians and Afros as being Afro despite the fact many see themselves as Indian...

— a contribution by Varuna Singh from New Jersey.
    Special thanks.