Paula Patton
Patton in 2011, photo by s_bukley / Shutterstock.com
Birth Name: Paula Maxine Patton
Place of Birth: Los Angeles, California, United States
Date of Birth: December 5, 1975
Ethnicity:
*father – African-American
*mother – German, English, smaller amount of Dutch
Paula Patton is an American actress. She is known for her roles in the films Hitch, Idlewild, Déjà Vu (2006), Jumping the Broom, Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, 2 Guns, Warcraft, and Sacrifice (2019).
Her father, Charles Patton, is black. Her mother, Joyce (Van Raden), who is white, has German, English, and at least 1/16th Dutch, ancestry. Paula has identified herself as Black. She has stated:
I find it [the term “biracial”] offensive. It’s a way for people to separate themselves from African-Americans… a way of saying ‘I’m better than that.’ I’m black because that’s the way the world sees me. People aren’t calling Barack Obama biracial. Most people think there’s a black president.
Paula has a son with her former husband, singer and songwriter Robin Thicke.
Paula’s maternal grandfather was Benjamin Alexander Van Raden, Jr. (the son of Benjamin Van Raden and Grace Read Alexander). Paula’s grandfather Benjamin was born in New York. Paula’s great-grandfather Benjamin was born in Nebraska, the son of Carl Edward Holeman Van Raden, whose father was Dutch and whose mother was German, and of Louisa Bergman, whose parents were German. Paula’s great-grandmother Grace was born in New York, and had English ancestry. Grace was the daughter of Robert Read Alexander and Laura Davis, who were from Massachusetts.
Sources: Genealogy of Paula’s maternal grandfather, Benjamin Alexander Van Raden, Jr. – https://www.wikitree.com
Obituary of Paula’s maternal grandfather, Benjamin Alexander Van Raden, Jr. – http://www.legacy.com
Marriage record of Paula’s maternal great-grandparents, Benjamin Van Raden and Grace Read Alexander – https://familysearch.org
Paula’s maternal great-grandfather, Benjamin Van Raden, on the 1910 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Paula’s maternal great-grandmother, Grace Read Alexander, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Paula’s maternal great-great-grandparents, Carl Edward Holeman Van Raden and Louisa Bergman, on the 1880 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
I don’t see what the big deal is. The fact of the matter is that she identifies more with being black because she looks more black than white…when identifying her race on a standardized test or even a survey (for W4s or instance) its always black, white, Asian, Latino….there’s no category for “biracial”. I think its a good thing that she identifies herself as being a black woman because she IS one. Just because she says that doesn’t mean she’s neglecting her Caucasian roots its just that bottom line (whether white ppl want to admit it or not…or whatever) society will categorize her as a black woman. When Obama was elected did they say he was the first “biracial” president or the first BLACK resident (even though he’s half white)………..yea i thought so……Even Halle Berry and Alicia Keys are biracial is that a problem that they sees themselves as BLACK women????? There is still a stigma in the black community and abroad about black and white because of our history of racism, slavery and eventually the fusion of the two races by product of affair or rape. But if you have a Black heritage why wouldn’t you celebrate it? If she had’ve said otherwise I would’ve been offended as a black woman. Half or full blooded she’s just as black as I am and thats alright with me.
i dont think biracial is an offensive term. it means you are two races and thats a beautiful thing. i think people w. biracial or multi racial backgrounds are so beautiful. i hate ppl make it such a big thing.
i feel like she is separating herself being half white. so she kinda contradicts herself when saying that.
i dont see why ppl make it so complicated bc if you are born to a white parent and black parent than your biracial, and sciences says so too.
@adfa:she is married to a white man,I don’t think she is denying anything.Also science never said that,people with a superiority complex did,we are not different races
i agree,and nothing wrong with being mixed,its also a beautiful thing as well as not being mixed,cuz you could kind of connect with these ethnicitys,cultures dat your background is.i cant really explain,but Alicia Keys kind of mentioned something like that,but yeah(atleast Alicia Keys embraces both of her parents ethnicitys.
so why did she marry a white man if she is soooo hooked on been black.. she has a dark skin but whte mind
@iyaec:that is one of the dumbest comments I have ever read on here,So going by you,all the white women who hookup with black men,have black minds right.yes it even sounds dumb when I say it
probably cuz love doesn’t has color,she cant help with who she falls in love with, they’ve known each-other since high school.your comment was kind of ridiculous.
You boyfriend is just one of the pale ones
All black folk’s are mixed to some percentage due to mass raped of African woman during slavery,she’s a black woman,they come in all shades and facial features. If you people would stop being so racist.and mingle with other peoples other than white’s, you would know this,their would not be a conversation about her background.