4 ms·

Races are extended families. People in a race are genetically and genealogically closer to each other than to people outside of it. This racial clustering of

Races are extended families. People in a race are genetically and genealogically closer to each other than to people outside of it. This racial clustering of relatedness is empirically testable. Race is not a social construct.

natrius 17y ago
You're using a fairly prescriptive definition of race. Race, as commonly used, is a social construct. Ancestry functions the way you describe, but as the example given above shows, "race" and ancestry are not directly related.
- kingkongrevenge 17y ago
  > "race" and ancestry are not directly related Of course they are.
  - natrius 17y ago
    Ancestry is objective. Race is subjective. There is a many-to-many relationship between the two. If people say you're black, then you're black. Different groups may come to different conclusions on what your race is depending on varying social norms. If you disagree with this, then you're not using "race" in the same way that the rest of country is.
philwelch 17y ago
You're conflating two distinct concepts. By the genetic definition, a 3/4 European 1/4 African would be white. By the social definition, a 3/4 European 1/4 African would be black.
- lionhearted 17y ago
  According to whom? My roommate in college was half-Haitian half-Portugese and identified more as European. My near 100% African-American buddy I played cards with identified himself as fully black. A half-Carib half-French (black skin tone) girl I knew identified as French. In London, a good friend who is half-Arabic half-Indian identifies equally as Arabic and Indian. My three-quarters Chinese one-quarter Japanese friend raised in Beijing identifies as pure Chinese. I think a 1/4th African 3/4ths European blood person raised in a predominantly black community would identify as black, and raised in a non-black community would identify as European. All my data is from people who live in international coastal cities though, so maybe it's different in various provinces and less affluent middle-of-country areas.
  - philwelch 17y ago
    Popular perception of race among Americans. The "one-drop rule" is widely attested, and for the most part is still true. This can and does vary from country to country--mixed-race Brazilians are considered white in Brazil, but black if they immigrate to the United States.

natrius 17y ago

You're using a fairly prescriptive definition of race. Race, as commonly used, is a social construct. Ancestry functions the way you describe, but as the example given above shows, "race" and ancestry are not directly related.

kingkongrevenge 17y ago
> "race" and ancestry are not directly related Of course they are.
- natrius 17y ago
  Ancestry is objective. Race is subjective. There is a many-to-many relationship between the two. If people say you're black, then you're black. Different groups may come to different conclusions on what your race is depending on varying social norms. If you disagree with this, then you're not using "race" in the same way that the rest of country is.

philwelch 17y ago

You're conflating two distinct concepts. By the genetic definition, a 3/4 European 1/4 African would be white. By the social definition, a 3/4 European 1/4 African would be black.

lionhearted 17y ago
According to whom? My roommate in college was half-Haitian half-Portugese and identified more as European. My near 100% African-American buddy I played cards with identified himself as fully black. A half-Carib half-French (black skin tone) girl I knew identified as French. In London, a good friend who is half-Arabic half-Indian identifies equally as Arabic and Indian. My three-quarters Chinese one-quarter Japanese friend raised in Beijing identifies as pure Chinese. I think a 1/4th African 3/4ths European blood person raised in a predominantly black community would identify as black, and raised in a non-black community would identify as European. All my data is from people who live in international coastal cities though, so maybe it's different in various provinces and less affluent middle-of-country areas.
- philwelch 17y ago
  Popular perception of race among Americans. The "one-drop rule" is widely attested, and for the most part is still true. This can and does vary from country to country--mixed-race Brazilians are considered white in Brazil, but black if they immigrate to the United States.