Source: Etienne Laurent/Getty
The beauty of black culture, even if we are mixed race, is in its diversity. From different personality types to the ways we style our curly hair to the spectrum of skin tones that represent every shade of melanin, there's no denying that all black people are beautiful in our eyes.
But you might be surprised at how often our lighter-skinned siblings are mistaken for white. Some people do in fact identify as mixed race and have a mix of cultures in their family DNA, but unfortunately, some people only have a superficial understanding of race, as seen when Amber Rose was recently called out by MSNBC host Joy Reid for her pro-Republican views, or as hip-hop fans have been witnessing for months now when Drake (albeit largely ineffectually) defended his blackness in the rap wars against Rick Ross and, more famously, Kendrick Lamar.
Related: Mixed – “White” celebs you didn't know were technically people of color
Racial insults aside, the recent exchange that played out on various levels made me think of other black entertainers throughout history who have been mistaken for white. It is certainly a bit painful to have one's racial identity denied in someone else's words solely because of the color of one's skin. In our eyes, it only shows how much work we still have to do as a society to live in a world with less prejudice and more love.
Some people just want to be accepted by those around them if nothing else. Is that too much to ask?
Scroll through to see 20 mixed race celebrities who are often mistaken for exclusively white: Some are a little more removed from the culture than others, but just like the rest of us, they all invite you in to cook for them.
1. Halsey
Italian-Hungarian mother, African-American/Irish father
Source: Angela Weiss/Getty
2. Rashida Jones
Ashkenazi Jewish mother, African American/Welsh father
Source: Axel/Bauer-Griffin/Getty
3. Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy
African-Jamaican mother, British/German father
Source: Rich Polk/Getty
4. Vin Diesel
His mother is English/German/Scottish/Irish, and his father is African-American.
Credit: Valerie Macon/Getty
5. Kehlani
Caucasian/Native American mother, African American father
Source: David Livingston/Getty
6. Tori Kelly
Irish-German mother, Jamaican-Puerto Rican father
Source: Sarah Morris/Getty
7. Logic
Caucasian mother, African American father
Source: Paras Griffin/Getty
8. Wentworth Miller
His mother is Russian/Swedish/French/Dutch/Syrian/Lebanese, and his father is African-American/Jamaican/German/British.
Source: Variety/Getty
9. Maya Rudolph
African American mother, Jewish father
Source: Frederick J. Brown/Getty
10. Carly Simon
The 2017 PBS series “Finding Your Roots” revealed that Carly Simon's DNA contains 10% African and 2% Native American, likely through her maternal grandmother. Her father was German Jewish and her mother was Cuban Catholic.
Source: Penske Media/Getty
11. Slash from Guns N' Roses
African American mother, English father
Source: Scott Dudelson/Getty
12. Hailee Steinfeld
African-American/British/Filipino/Irish/Scottish/German mother, Jewish father
Source: Eric Charbonneau/Getty
13. Shailene Woodley
Mother of Creole descent (African/French/Spanish/German/English/Swiss) and father from the British Isles
Source: Kevin Winter/Getty
14. Cardi B
Trinidadian/African/Spanish mother, Dominican father
Source: Gilbert Flores/Getty
15. Jennifer Beals
Irish American mother, African American father
Source: Jon Kopaloff/Getty
16. Martin Gore of Depeche Mode
British mother, African American father
Source: Mondadori Portfolio/Getty
17. Carol Channing
German-Jewish mother, African-American father
Source: Bettman/Getty
18. Cameron Boyce
Jewish mother, African American father
Source: Variety/Getty
19. Derek Jeter
British/German/Irish mother, mixed African-American father
Source: Mary DeCicco/Getty
20. Freddie Washington
African American/European mother, African American/European father
Source: Bettman/Getty
