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Genealogy Book Store > Genealogy books beginning with O
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One Drop: My Father's Hidden Life--A Story of Race and Family Secrets |
Author: Bliss Broyard
Published: 2007-09-27 |
List price: $24.99
Our price: $16.49
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As of: January 06th, 2009 05:42:53 AM
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Customer comments on this selection.
 The tragedy of race in America
At the end of the book Bliss admits that there is no scientific basis for race but the whole book makes it seem that having mixed blood makes one a pariah. Every human being originated in Africa but the stupid racial categories that persist today in America originated to perpetuate slavery and are bogus.
Barack Obama(Not in the book) is defined as a black man but his sister is Eurasian. How stupid is that? The Mountbatten family has an African ancestor but it is
proudly recorded and none of them walk around having African specific medical tests and have married into the British Royal family for over a hundred years.
Anatole made his life easier by living as a white man. It prevented him from being excluded from society when he was making his way in the world.All these people who felt he had to acknowledge 'what he was' missed what he really was, a human being who wanted to be liked and accepted.Had white society been broadminded enough this would not have been necessary.
In America race is paramount. It is impossible to talk about a black man without saying he is black and the vast majority of black Americans are viewed as unwelcome, lazy, stupid and dishonest. They all have stories about constantly having to prove themselves to their inferiors.
Every negative story that appears in the press never fails to show the black face in handcuffs.The black man will never be free unless he has the right to be wrong.
White America consciously or unconsciously punishes African Americans for slavery when in fact African Americans were the victims.The south is still smarting over a war that was shameful and wrong.
Bliss obviously enjoyed her quest on the dark side but it was quite pathetic how her own bias and racism came out unconsciously. I think her family recognized this by their lack of enthusiasm for her overtures for friendship. As for urging her blond brother to be tested for prostate cancer earlier (because of his black blood) was again genetically unsound and pathetic. Each time a human being is created, they are unique and carry the genes of ice age ancestors as well as recent ones. Variety is the spice of life.
The historical facts were interesting but Anatole did no more than millions of people, who conceal their humble origins in order to keep up with those who think they are superior. It was a sad sad indictment of those who exclude.
 A Full Bucket Story
As a member of a vast cousinage with four living generations, I can't imagine not knowing even one of my people. So, I understand fully Bliss Broyard's climb down her own family tree to discover her father's roots and,thereby,her own. On this journey, she went back further than her great-great-grandfather - who "passed" for black - to unearth and reveal a complex, conflicted history of her family in America. By accomplishing serious detective work, she straightens the twisted narrative of a distinct cultural mix. The in-depth study and analysis of Creoles - a joyful fusion of African, European and Native American - is a profound rendering of the symbolic melting pot. Outside of Louisiana and the emigrants who carried the culture to other environs, Creole (with a capital "C") is generally unknown or little understood. Thanks to this book, we learn that it is so much more than spicy cuisine and an elegant patois. Even the view and impact of placage relationships, so romanticized in novels, is explored. Like anyone who denies his birthright for any reason (there are reasons other than ethnicity)and reinvents himself, Broyard sacrificed much. The saddest part of the story is not Broyard's repudiation of his complete lineage. It is his failure to recognize the great gift of his inheritance and share it with his children. While this book is not an example of great prose, the strength of the author's narrative is her forthright assessment of her own beliefs about race, her unintended prejudices and her reactions to new-found kin and friends. She acknowledges her father's racism, exacerbated by his reliance on stereotypes. Anatole doesn't cross the color line solely for financial and social advantage. In part, he denied the One Drop because of his acceptance of the wrong idea of inherent white superiority. This is not surprising given Creoles' centuries-long separation from their black brethen. Already separated from the larger black community by language and culture, the Broyards' move to NYC solidified the rift: the uneducated Broyards could not be embraced by the black professional class (whose very existance belied the notion of inferiority). Notwithstanding their appearance, class as defined by academic achievement and relative wealth trumped the Broyards' ability to pass the brown bag test. Todd Broyard, who gets limited coverage, seems to have grasped this effect on his father's choices, which Bliss explains, "(F)or Todd, the relevant problem was the 'class line, not the color line.'" Perhaps, and maybe rightly so, Anatole Broyard did not believe he could be accepted into the right class if he carried the baggage of the wrong color.
One Drop
I liked this book. Not so much b/c I was interested in Anatole Broyard, but rather I found his family history and his daughter's struggles to come to terms with her father's and her own identity much more compelling. Bliss Broyard did a wonderful job of detailing her paternal history all the way back to 18c Louisiana. I felt her need to connect with her new found family and her pain when her family (while polite) did not fully embrace her. Highly recommended.
 All time favorite non-fiction book
Bliss Broyard is amazing, and I am so glad that she wrote this book. I discovered her existence seeing an excerpt from African American Lives and became curious about her journey. I had just had my own DNA testing done to confirm or dispel a family story about us being American Indian and Scottish, instead of Irish as we'd been told. When my results came in, showing a strong subsaharan African and Egyptian Berber influence (in addition to the Scottish and American Indian parts) I was startled and surprised. I didn't know what to make of it, or how to incorporate this new knowledge into my self-identity. So, reading Ms. Broyard's book was amazing for me, because I'd gone through many of the challenges she spoke of. I was somewhat jealous of her ability to connect to relatives and gain so much genealogy information, as I've been doing these searches for 10 years and not gotten so much. Her book is a testament to rethinking the memory of her father and making meaning for herself. Her writing is exceptional, and she's honest, sincere. I wish there were more authors (or people in general!) like Ms. Broyard. Good for her for publishing this! I've passed on my copy to other friends who struggle with their multiple cultures and identities, and gifted a copy to a friend who's interested in his own genealogy. Go Ms. Broyard, and bless you for the courage it took to write this book!
One Drop
Bliss' voyage was very special to me. I felt her pain and confusion and unfortunately could relate too closely to her tale. Her account is so honest and self-reflective that it was embarassing at times to be privvy to her thoughts. As a mother,I wanted to hug her and explain to her all the racial garbage that American society dumps on us. As a Creole of Color whose mother, grandmother and God knows how many other relatives passed while I couldn't, I can relate to her family stories and pain. Yet, this young lady taught me so much with her amazing historical research. If I ever drag myself back to Louisiana to my maternal home, I will have lots of tips to learn more about my family. For example, who is my Italian grandfather and does a great grandfather's portrait as a judge still hang in a county courthouse? I'd love to have her help me retrace my roots. I am amused at her stories of people discovering their black ancestry and I laugh at the thought that if people in the 30s only knew that my red-headed grandmother, a magazine cover girl, was actually black/Negroe/Colored/Creole or that my mom, the lady in the 60s Wonder Bread commercial, wasn't white. But the scars still remain with all of us. The lies, the denial of self still haunt the family. I am sending this book to my mom who prbably to this day experiences some guilt about not raising her eldest daughter because she couldn't pass in her white expatriate world.
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