>
>don't stop plenty of black folks from doing it. so basically
>owning up to your african ancestry is an L if you're white and
>not a rapper?
>


you're reading too much into this. it's like someone who's one-sixteenth native american putting native american on their college application to get in for free. are they technically correct by saying they are native american? by the census' definition, yes. but are they native american in the sense that they have suffered the ramifications of how indigenous people have been treated by white people for hundreds of years or in the sense that they live with native american culture? probably not.

if tom brady were one-fourth black he'd be technically right by saying he was "African-American." but should he feel right or justified in doing so if he's been treated like he's 100% white for his entire life and never had to experience the struggles that many people have had to because of their heritage? personally, i wouldn't feel right saying that i was "African-American" when i was only one-fourth and looked white because it would almost be ignorant in my opinion. obviously i'm not answering that question for every person that is put in that situation, just throwing out my thoughts.

edit: and if i was in the public eye i DEFINATELY wouldn't feel right being like "Hey guys, I'm Black and I'm a success story. Everyone should be proud of me." because I wouldn't have experienced the obstacles in the way of success for black people.