Denzel Washington
Washington in 2010, photo by Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com
Birth Name: Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr.
Place of Birth: Mount Vernon, New York, U.S.
Date of Birth: December 28, 1954
Ethnicity: African-American
Denzel Washington is an American actor, filmmaker, director, and producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Glory (1989), and the Academy Award for Best Actor for Training Day (2001). He has also starred in Malcolm X, Courage Under Fire, Fences, American Gangster, Flight, The Equalizer, and The Tragedy of Macbeth, among many other films, and directed dramas Antwone Fisher, The Great Debaters, and Fences.
Denzel is African-American. He is the son of Lennis (Lowe) and Denzel H. Washington, a Pentecostal preacher. His father was born in Virginia and his mother was born in Georgia. Denzel is married to actress and singer Pauletta Pearson Washington (born Pauletta Rachelle Pearson), with whom he has four children, including actor and professional football player John David Washington and twins, director, writer, and producer Malcolm Washington and actress Olivia Washington.
Denzel was selected People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1996. He is the first man of significant African ancestry, and the first non-white man, to have been given this title by the magazine (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, in 2016, is the second, and Idris Elba, in 2018, John Legend, in 2019, and Michael B. Jordan, in 2020, are the others, fitting both criteria).
Denzel’s paternal grandfather was William Washington (the son of William Washington, Sr. and Margaret Johnson). Denzel’s grandfather William was born in Virginia. Denzel’s great-grandparents William and Margaret were born into slavery.
Denzel’s paternal grandmother was Virginia Page (the daughter of Herod “Harry” Page and Lucia “Louise”/”Louesa”/Louisa Rain/Rayn/Rayne). Denzel’s grandmother Virginia was born in Virginia.
Denzel’s maternal grandfather was named Tillman/Tilman Lowe/Low. Tillman was born in Georgia.
Denzel’s maternal grandmother was named Eliza Jackson (the daughter of William Jackson and Rachel). Eliza was born in Georgia. William and Rachel were born into slavery.
Sources: Article about Denzel’s family history – http://archive.is
Genealogy of Denzel Washington (focusing on his father’s side) – https://www.geni.com
Denzel’s father on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Denzel’s paternal great-grandparents, William Washington, Sr. and Margaret Johnson, on the 1870 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Denzel’s paternal grandmother, Virginia Page, on the 1880 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Denzel’s mother on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Jonas,
I beg to differ. Miscegenation is not new and that is especially true
in America. Ever hear of E. Pluribus Unum?
Perhaps you’ve never knew of or have any personal knowledge
of Biracial people. Please do a bit of research on the information I presented
especially the information about
the infamous Kentucky slave trader Lewis Robards and his Fancy Girls.
Research Elizabeth Keys and Partus sequitur ventrem, which
I mentioned in detail in my previous comment.
Robards had his own private stock of Mulatto women whom
he sold to very wealthy Planters as concubines and they fetched
a very hefty price indeed.
Do you really believe that out of all of those concubines
not one ever got pregnant ?
Especially back in the day.
Robards had a stock full of inventory of Biracial women to sell
and his overstock he sent down the Ohio River
to New Orleans to work in the brothels.
If you think that White men didn’t partake in the products
that were sold there, you might want to think again.
Do you really think that not one of the brothel workers
ever got pregnant?
Hmmm..
Robards’ White wife Rachel left the marriage because of his ( Lewis )
many forays down to the slave quarters.
Do you really think that Lewis Robards was an outlier as far as
partaking with the help? If so, I beg to differ.
Research Rachel Robards and Alexander Hamilton.
Regarding your comment which you wrote this:
“Having some amount of euro ancestry down the bloodline makes
no pratical difference if all your physical traits and the vast majority of your genetically composition is still sub-saa african, aesthetically and sociologically you are just as black as african born.”
““““
My response : Are you saying this is fact.? If so according to Whom?
For one thing your mention of having” SOME amount of European ancestry down the bloodline”,
makes no sense whatsoever,, at least to me and begs the question :
How much is SOME determined? And again, by Whom?
Is ‘some’ … one drop or 10 drops or 50 drops? How is a “tainted” drop
measured exactly?
If bloodline and DNA that we A L L inherit from our ancestors
don’t mean nothin’ ( according to you ) than What DOES mean something ?
Our physical traits and appearance?
So exactly what body part does that include? Eye Color, Skin,
Hair? Lips? All of the above or only one drop for all of the above?
So your perspective is that our inside genetic traits don’t
matter but our outside genetic traits do matter?
According to Whom?
IF DNA and Bloodline doesn’t matter then why does
forensic science makes such a ‘big deal’ about DNA and have the ability
to trace our ancestors and people in our family tree by that science?
or do you think that for Black Folks One Drop
washes all the European stuff away?
Hmmm… That doesn’t make sense to me and since
we’re talkin’ about science isn’t it suppose to make sense?
If One Drop washes all of Black People European genetics
away then ,how do you explain how
many Biracial people were able to pass for White?
Research Plaçage.
Research Hypodescent
Chattel Slavery, Share Cropping, the Black Codes, Jim Crow,
One Drop aka Hypodescent, and Nixons War on Drugs
were all enacted for one reason and one reason only which
was to continue and maintain a cheap labor source.
Research the Peonage system.
Se x Power and Money are the only three thing that runs this World.
Race is just a construct of all three of those elements.
Nothing more, nothing less.
Always has been, Always will be.
P. S. I can provide links to support most EVERYTHING I’ve written here, however I’m new here and I don’t know if this blog allows hyperlinks.
I’ll research the policy and provide links if I’m allowed to as
I’m a staunch believe in providing information from a vast spectrum
of sources so that the reader of my comments can do their own research
and critically think as opposed to : ‘ because I said so’.
I personally believe that Knowledge from a vast spectrum of information
is Power.
So, if you know the hyperlink policy is ok to link,, please do link some
information to support Your perspective. I would like to read it.
Regarding Denzel, I only found this blog after looking at the movie
Flight and noticing Denzel had a Widows Peak, which I explained in
my first comment here.
One of the other commentors mentioned Denzel having
a possible Scottish connection which that got my attention
because several years ago I had researched ( because of my father
and uncles Widow’s Peak ) and found information about Scottish
people having a high percentage of the population with the genetic
trait for Widows Peaks.
My father’s family have personal connects with the Robards,
and (by the way) the Robards were from Wales.
Ain’t Scotland and Wales in the UK?
So again I ask the question do our DNA ‘genetic traits mean nothing?
My mother who was Biracial )and did not look like
a sub=saa African nor did my aunt ( her sister)
died from Polycythemia Vera
a rare disease which mostly in high percentages afflict Europeans.
So, please share with me again ( and provide
links if possible ) how DNA and Bloodline means nothing.
Jonas,
I just wanted to add this one more thought.
Although, as stated, my grandmother was listed as Black on my mother’s certificate because of miscegenation, I meant that although she was obviously White, the hospital where my mother
was born in 1934 legally could not record my grandmother as
White because it was against the law.
Many times it was the US census takers who determined the race of a person
by their physical appearance only , however that became confusing because sometimes especially if one of the Biracial children in the household
for instance was VERY light, straight hair and hazel eyes and the
father( for example) was of mixed race of a copper brown complexion
and hazel eyes with dark wavy hair, (not tight spiral hair)
and the mother was White. In this case the census take had the ‘power’
to record that type family as Black
( because of the father’s brown skin color ) Or record the family as Mulatto,
because of the mixture appearances of the other family members.
.
This describes my family. My aunt could have passed for White,
but she didn’t.
My mother had a more of skin tone like Megan Markle (Prince Harry’s wife ) with dark loose curls and hazel eyes.
So truth be told judging people by their “drop” percentages
is very misleading which is how and why so many
Biracial people were able to pass as white.
Bloodline and DNA has replaced the back in the day bias ‘census takers’ ,
which is probably a good thing.
So yeah, bloodline is not as farrrr back as you might think.
IMHO, Biracial people should have their own category of race
much like they did before Partus.
One Drop doesn’t make someone Black and I’m sure many
of the White Planters who had Biracial offspring would agree with that
sentiment as well. . Research Children of the Plantation.
Many of the compassionate fathers of Biracial children
sent their offspring UP NORTH.
Research Wilberforce Ohio.