Your big questions about race, answered

Ever since the recent Black Lives Matter protests, leaders have called for a national conversation on race.

So here’s a start.

Race is a thorny topic, and for people seeking to understand others’ racism – or their own – it can be difficult to know where to turn.

So please consider this a safe space where you can pose questions you may hesitate to ask elsewhere. To help answer them, we’ve reached out to scholars and other experts on race. Send us your questions — there’s a place to do that at the bottom of this page — and we’ll try to answer those, too.

Our purpose here is not to chide, preach or settle historical scores. We’re all in this together. And we all have questions. Here are some of yours.

We’ll keep updating this by answering more of your questions as they come in.

How come White people can’t use the n-word but some Black people say it all the time?

Professor Neal Lester, who teaches a course on the n-word at Arizona State University, explains why this question is so loaded.

There is an undeniable double standard in the use of the n-word. Some Black people freely use it in intimate conversations with one another. Black hip-hop artists use it in their lyrics. Black comedians such as Richard Pryor and Chris Rock have been notorious for using the n-word in their stand-up acts.

So why then, is it okay for Black people to use it and not Whites?

There’s no one answer to that question. Some Black people say the word is too repulsive to use in any context, even by other Black folks. They claim that using it reflects “internalized oppression”: Black people unwittingly accepting racist stereotypes.

But other Black people say they can use the n-word because they have “reclaimed” it and taken the sting out of a slur by using the word as a term of endearment.

If that doesn’t make sense, consider this comparison. Some women who call each other “b*tch” make a similar claim: We use it as a term of affection.

Some Black people who use the n-word follow the same logic. Since we have uniquely suffered from the use of the n-word, we’re the only ones who have the right to use it. When we reclaim it, we can use it any way we want. For them, using the n-word isn’t repeating a racial slur; it’s an act of defiance.

—John Blake

Is it racist to believe there are some biological differences between races?

Let’s start here: Are there biological differences between races?

The short answer, scientists say, is no.

Anthropologists and geneticists have studied this question for decades. What they’ve found is that humans can’t be divided into distinct categories based on any particular inherited physical or behavioral traits.

In fact, any two people are about 99.9% identical. Differences in skin tone or facial features are superficial, determined by about 0.1% of the genome and often shaped by environmental factors. And while scientists can use DNA to make a reasonable guess about a person’s geographic ancestry, that information doesn’t reliably correspond to their race.

“The idea that race corresponds to different types of humans is really an illusion,” says Clarence Gravlee, a medical anthropologist at the University of Florida.

This isn’t to say race isn’t real, scholars say. Rather, race is a social and political reality as opposed to a scientific one.

Still, there’s never actually been agreement among experts on how exactly race is defined, says Duana Fullwiley, a medical anthropologist at Stanford University.

Is it skin color? Hair texture? Height? Scholars have documented anywhere from three to upwards of 60 races, depending on the classifying characteristics, she says. But there is no set of traits that corresponds to all of the people in a given race. Simply put, racial categories don’t fit neatly into a box.

That said, there are racial differences in biological outcomes. For example, African Americans are more likely than White people to die of heart disease, while Native Americans are more likely to have diabetes.

But those outcomes are a product of racism, not genetics, experts said. What that means is that race-based differences in health are due to social and environmental factors such as economic status and lack of access to quality food and health care.

“There are biological consequences to living in a body defined by race, but that does not mean there are innate biological differences that can allow any one person to sort the world’s people into consistent racial groups,” Fullwiley says.

So what about Black athletes who seem to dominate sports like football, basketball, track and distance running? Some people argue this is evidence that Black people are superior athletes because of their genetics.

But again, this conflates global geographic variation with race, says Alan Goodman, a biological anthropologist at Hampshire College.

“Our brain teaches our eyes to think about race and to see race. And so that’s what we see,” Goodman says. “But it’s human variation that we’re seeing that’s actually what’s at play.”

The ability to run fast is a complex trait, influenced by both genetics and the environment. And while it’s true that certain geographic populations might have genetic differences that affect their athletic performance (runners who dominate the world’s major marathons are from the same tribe in Kenya), that doesn’t mean that all Kenyans are genetically predisposed to winning long-distance races.

And it certainly doesn’t mean that’s the case for all people who are considered Black – which can encompass the entire continent of Africa and its diaspora.

So is it racist to believe there are some biological differences between races? The answer may be moot, given that the notion is inaccurate. But there are inherent dangers in perpetuating the idea, says Goodman, the biological anthropologist.

If health disparities are attributed to genetics, then they can be dismissed as inevitable, rather than a consequence of “living in a racist society,” he says. “It’s not just incorrect. It’s harmful science.”

—Harmeet Kaur, CNN

I’m a White person who wants to help combat racism. Where do I start?

Here are some key first steps White people can take to work effectively toward change, says Paul Kivel, an activist and author of “Uprooting Racism: How White People can Work for Racial Justice.”

Educate yourself. This step is often overlooked but is crucial in understanding issues of race. Turn to books, articles, movies and other resources to deepen your understanding of systemic racism. Listen to what people of color, including members of Black Lives Matter, Showing Up for Racial Justice and immigrant and Native American communities, are saying.

But do not just rely on people of color to do your education for you, Kivel says.

“People of color are organizing for their lives and defending their communities and they’ve often been forced to do a lot of emotional work for White people,” he says. “This is a time for us to not put that burden on them.”

Start conversations. Initiate discussions about racism with your partner, family members, friends, children and coworkers. Share how you feel, what makes you upset and invite others to give their take. Together, try to pinpoint how racism plays out in your communities and what you can do about it. And if you witness someone saying or doing something racist, speak up.

“Silence is a form of complicity,” Kivel says. “It’s colluding with the status quo, pretending that nothing is really wrong.”

The more awareness we help bring to an issue, he says, the “more we understand that we’re very much in the middle of this system of oppression, not on the outskirts looking in.”

Get involved in your community. Take action by showing up to city council and school board meetings, addressing policies in your workplace or working with groups to address gentrification and housing segregation by lobbying officials to create more affordable housing and put in renters’ protections.

Fighting structural racism benefits everyone, Kivel says.

“I think very often, as White people, we think that we need to save people of color or do this to help them,” Kivel says. “We need to understand that this is about our mutual interests, that our society is being torn apart by racism and that we all have a stake in building the communities that we want to live in.”

—Christina Maxouris, CNN

How can I develop genuine friendships with people of color without them thinking I am using them to assuage my White guilt?

All friendships are based on trust, compassion, consistency and an open mind.

In short, treat people of color the same way you would treat anyone when it comes to building genuine friendships, experts say. That way your friendships can grow genuinely and organically.

That means going beyond surface engagement for people you’re seeking to be friends with – regardless of race or other identities, says David Stamps, an assistant professor at Louisiana State University who’s conducted research on race, gender and the media.

“Genuine friendships are built on foundations of shared interests, shared community and openness,” he says. “Invite someone out for coffee and engage in conversations about their personal interests, family, life aspirations or thoughts on matters outside of race relations.”

Stamps says people should approach building friendships the same way with everybody, including friends of different racial backgrounds.

“Everyone wants to be seen, heard and engaged with as a fully realized human being – start here and the genuine friendships will develop naturally over time.” But true friendships will be harder to come by if people of color think they are being sought out just to address someone’s issues about race, Stamps says.

We are living in a time when conversations about racism are inevitable between most friends of different races. If you want to have those talks, educate yourself on aspects of racial inequality but don’t expect your African American friends to shoulder the burden for your lessons in social justice.

“There are times when the person of color is placed in the difficult position of being teacher in trying to educate their friend about race, racism, and systemic oppression,” says Dr. Tina M. Harris, chair of race, media and cultural literacy at Louisiana State University’s Manship School of Mass Communication. “They are assuming emotional labor in a space that should have minimal stress.”

So remember: When you build a strong, genuine foundation in a friendship, it leaves less room for someone to question your intentions. And it makes discussing issues of race less awkward.

—Faith Karimi, CNN

Why are some light-skinned Black people prejudiced against darker-skinned people?

The term is known as colorism, and it’s something that’s been affecting Black people – in the US and abroad – for hundreds of years.

The definition of colorism is the discrimination of people based on skin shades and is prevalent among people of the same ethnic or racial group. Though the practice has been around since the era of slavery, the term was believed to have been coined in the 1980s by Alice Walker, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author.

Society’s preference for lighter skin dates to slavery in the 1600s, according to a 2020 report published in the journal E-International Relations. The report says masters favored slaves with lighter skin and assigned them indoor duties that were less difficult than those given to slaves with darker skin, who spent long hours in the fields under grueling conditions.

There are many reasons for this preferential treatment. Because many light-skinned people typically have Eurocentric features, some consider them more intelligent than people whose skin is dark.

This attitude even runs deep in the Black community. In the early 1900s, Black churches, fraternities and neighborhood groups used a “paper bag test” – comparing a person’s skin tone to a paper bag – to decide who was “light-skinned enough” to join.

Many Blacks believed that having lighter skin brought more economic benefits and social mobility. If you married someone who could give you lighter-skinned children, they’d have a chance to get better jobs and advance in White-dominated society.

And it continues to this day. Actress Beverly Naya, whose ancestry is Nigerian, produced a Netflix documentary, “Skin,” that she says was prompted in part by how she was bullied over her skin color while growing up in the United Kingdom. Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o, who grew up in Kenya, has said that as a young girl she used to pray to God for lighter skin and calls colorism “the daughter of racism.”

Movies and TV series also have explored the subject, from Spike Lee’s “School Daze” to ABC’s “Black-ish.”

—Amir Vera, CNN

Which is the correct terminology: Black, African American or people of color?

It depends. “Black” refers to dark-skinned people of African descent, no matter their nationality. “African American” refers to people who were born in the United States and have African ancestry. Many people use the terms interchangeably.

Young Black activists in the United States started using “Black” in the 1960s when referring to descendants of slaves as a way to leave the term “Negro” and the Jim Crow era behind, says Keith Mayes, associate professor of African American and African Studies at the University of Minnesota.

“African American” caught on in the US in the 1980s as a more “particular and historical” term than the generic “Black,” Mayes says.

“People of color” was originally meant to be a synonym of “Black,” but its meaning has expanded to accommodate Latinos, Asians, Native Americans and other non-white groups, says Efrén Pérez, a professor of political science and psychology at the University of California Los Angeles. To say you are a person of color is more celebratory and positive than to say you are part of a “minority,” he says.

All three terms are acceptable. Which you prefer comes down to personal choice, the situation you’re in and how invested you are in your racial identity, Perez says.

The meanings of words and phrases can change over time. For example, the words “colored” and “Negro” are now considered dated and offensive – but they weren’t when the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the United Negro College Fund were created in the early 20th century.

Those organizations haven’t changed their names, but “by no means they are trying to perpetuate a name that is offensive to Black people,” Mayes says. “Their very history, it’s about advancing the Black cause.”

—Nicole Chavez, CNN