Skin Color Tells Us Nothing

By W. F. Twyman, Jr.

“The study confirms that societal constructions of race are not useful when it comes to genetics.” — Genetic Study Shows Skin Color Is Only Skin Deep by Jason Daley, Smithsonian Magazine, October 17, 2017

My Mom was a brown-skinned woman (think Oprah Winfrey or Whitney Houston). Her last surviving sister (now deceased) had the same complexion, however, my Mom’s brothers were all dark-skinned men. Their West African heritage was clear from their appearance. They were all opinionated, strong-willed men with class, fedora hat wearing God-fearing gentlemen with no use for profanity. The vast majority of my uncles on Mom’s side were stand-up husbands and fathers. First marriage, then children…in that order. I am the proud nephew of several ministers.

My Dad is a light-skinned man, the fairest of his siblings. He clearly took after his Mom (my Grandma) who had the complexion of a Cherokee. In turn, Grandma’s paternal family, the Browns, were light and fair-skinned people.

Based on physical appearance, I grew up assuming Mom was of more West African ancestry because of skin color.

Wrong!

According to Gedmatch.com, my Mom and Dad had an equal amount of West African and European ancestry. I was flabbergasted. The genetic wheel of fortune did not respect skin color. This revelation surprised me until I recalled a conversation with a maternal first cousin in Chesterfield County, Virginia. He was also interested in our Womack family ancestry. He revealed that our maternal grandmother had blue eyes! At first, I was incredulous but I recalled how my maternal grandmother’s brothers appeared in old black and white photographs,. Their eyes were light in color. And get this, I learned my Mom’s maternal greatgrandmother was probably a white woman who transitioned to the black community a la Rachael Dolezal in the 1870s. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Dolezal When did my maternal ancestor born white in the 1840s in Pittsylvania County, Virginia become black? Was it the first kiss with her adulterous black neighbor next door? Was it the sight of her first mixed-race child? Was it when white family and friends turned their backs away on a blood daughter and sibling?

These are fascinating thoughts for which I have only questions, no answers.

If I looked at the evidence with dispassion, my Mom’s European genes should not surprise me. Like many people, I made assumptions about my Mom’s genetic ancestry based on her skin color. Her real ancestry reminded me that less than one (1) percent of our 20,000 to 25,000 genes account for skin color.

Skin color is a lousy way to divine anything about a person’s ancestral past… or sense of self.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/genetic-study-shows-skin-color-just-skin-deep-180965261/

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/12/science/skin-color-race.html

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2017/11/skin-pigmentation-is-far-more-complex-than-thought/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34515229/#:~:text=Melanin%20is%20produced%20by%20cells,indirect%20effect%20on%20skin%20color.

https://www.gbhealthwatch.com/Trait-Skin-Color.php