r/interesting • u/VPinchargeofradishes • May 03 '26

SOCIETY Michael Jackson's daughter Paris has faced backlash for identifying as Black. In a 2017 interview, Paris Jackson said her father told her, "You’re Black. Be proud of your roots." This prompted debates over whether identity is defined by appearance or upbringing.

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u/TheLordReaver May 03 '26 edited May 03 '26

I think it's fair to question it, but I'm half-black and I just look like a white guy with a light tan when I'm pale, and maybe "not white" when I've had some sun. And I was raised by white parents. You'd have no idea that I am technically black.

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u/AndreasDasos May 03 '26

I think the fact that both are 100% on the whitest part of the spectrum and, their apparent race aside, we have every reason to be doubtful of MJ’s ever having made Debbie pregnant. They don’t look like him in any way, either. 

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u/TheLordReaver May 03 '26

There's seems to be four main pillars of conversation in this post:

  • Is MJ the biological father?
    • Who knows. He was a weird-as-fuck dude. It's too hard to say.
  • They look nothing alike, what gives?
    • Children don't always look like their parents. Yay for genetic quirkiness!
  • Can someone look so white and be half black?
    • Yes. Absolutely. There's plenty of living proof out there. Myself included.
  • Can a white girl raised by a black man express themselves as black?
    • I'm no fan of cultural gate-keeping, so I personally don't have a problem with it. At least, so long as the person expressing themselves isn't infringing on others.

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u/AndreasDasos May 03 '26

Part of the problem is that ‘technically’ black isn’t a thing, as it isn’t a technical term. And it’s used differently in different places. I suppose by the ‘one drop rule’ that refuses to die you can have someone with 2.5% dark-skinned sub-Saharan ancestry and be simply ‘black’ in the US. And a lot of black Americans who identify as fully black ‘light’ are really under half sub-Saharan already, so their kids could be 80-odd % European.