Vanessa L. Williams
Williams in 2011, kathclick/bigstock.com
Birth Name: Vanessa Lynn Williams
Place of Birth: Tarrytown, New York, U.S.
Date of Birth: March 18, 1963
Ethnicity: African-American, along with some English and Welsh
Vanessa L. Williams is an American actress, singer, songwriter, producer, model, and television personality. She was the first African-American to win the Miss America Pageant, in 1983. Her roles include the films Eraser, Soul Food, Hoodlum, Dance with Me, Light It Up, Shaft (2000), Batman: Hush, and Bad Hair, and the series Ugly Betty.
Vanessa is the daughter of Helen L. (Tinch) and Milton Augustine Williams, Jr. Her parents were both black. Her brother is actor and comedian Chris Williams. Vanessa grew up in the mainly white middle-class suburb of Millwood, New York. Vanessa is married to businessperson Jim Skrip. She has three children, including dancer and singer Jillian Hervey, with her former husband, public relations specialist Ramon Hervey II; and a daughter with her former husband, Canadian basketball player and actor Rick Fox.
An AncestryDNA test taken by Vanessa stated that her genetic ancestry is:
*56% African
——–*23% Ghana
——–*15% Cameroon/Congo
——–*7% Togo
——–*6% Benin
——–*5% Senegal
*44% European
——–*17% British Isles
——–*12% Finnish/Ural/Volga
——–*11% Southern European
——–*4% Spain/Portugal
In an interview, a journalist stated that Vanessa’s mixed heritage includes African-American, Welsh, and Native American. No Native American markers appear on her DNA test. Vanessa appeared on the program Who Do You Think You Are? (2011), where she discovered that her great-great-grandfather, David Carll, was a “mulatto” (mixed race) man who avoided slavery and married a white woman (her great-great-grandmother).
Vanessa’s ancestry is at least 1/32nd English. One of her maternal great-great-great-grandfathers, George Appleford, was born in Surrey, England, in 1802.
Vanessa’s paternal grandfather was Milton Augustine/Abner Williams (the son of John Hill Williams and Mary L. Fields). Milton was born in Tennessee. John was the son of George Williams and Mollie/Molly Turner. Mary L. was the daughter of William A. Fields and Elizabeth “Lizzie” Fields.
Vanessa’s paternal grandmother was Iris Agnes Carl/Carll (the daughter of Frank S. Carl/Carll and Imogene Jackson). Iris was born in New York. Frank was the son of David Carll and Mary Louisa Appleford, who was white, and whose own father was English. Imogene was the daughter of Henry Titus Jackson and Emiline/Emmaline G. Russell.
Vanessa’s maternal grandfather was Edward James Tinch (the son of John Wilbur Tinch and Helen Elizabeth Fitzgerald). Edward was born in New Jersey. John was the son of John Tinch. Helen was the daughter of William Fitzgerald and Margaret.
Vanessa’s maternal grandmother was Doris Catherine Griffen/Griffin (the daughter of Moses George Wilson and Elvira Viola Johnson). Doris was born in New York. Moses George was the son of George Wilson and Frances Duson. Elvira was the daughter of Waldo/Walter Johnson and Fannie/Fanny Cavel/Calvin.
Regarding her DNA test, Vanessa has said:
Now, I can’t wait to go to Ghana and Cameroon and Togo and Senegal — it’s a great opportunity to see why the customs resonate with you. I love to travel and I love to explore, and I have to admit that I was always jealous of people who knew their cultural background. Both my family and myself came out with light eyes, so obviously there is a recessive gene here. Not knowing what that was just made me very curious.
Sources: Genealogy of Vanessa L. Williams – http://www.geni.com
Genealogy of Vanessa’s father (focusing on his mother’s side) – https://www.findagrave.com
Vanessa’s paternal grandmother, Iris Agnes Carl/Carll, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
im intitled to my own opinion so what i say goes!!! and i really dnt give a fuck about what you others think!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! so dt even bother writing to me iwont even look at it!!!!!! and yes black people can have colored eyes!!!! but only if there mix!
To italysdivine101
Well this is not for you,but for others.It’s been proven on here many times that what you said is incorrect.Now in the states,I’ll give you that,but Africa no:
This is a Kikuyu girl from Kenya:
http://www.nsff.no/cms/grafikk/lars_erik_hauklien-black_girl_blue_eyes.jpg
It’s a recessive trait and just because it more common in certain cultures,doesn’t mean it’s exclusive to those cultures
My Biology Teacher Said That His GrandMother Had Blue Eyes But She Did Not Have Any Ancestors With Blue Eyes! And She Was Also East Asian (Taiwanese). With Eye Colors, East Asian People Are Just The Same As Black People, You Rarrely See Them In Different Colored Eyes Usually In Brown!
But My Biology Teacher Said That Anyone Could Have Any Eye Color, Whether Your Black Or East Asian etc. He Said That If You Have Different Eye Colors From Your Ancestry,Its Because Of Your Genotype (Aa, AA, Bb, BB, Cc, CC etc) Combination.
So If Those Genotype Make A Unusal Match (For Ex. AC, Ba, Cb etc) Then You Can Get A Different Eye Color Then What You Should Have!
And Keep In Mind That Genes Are Very Complicated Thing, Not Even Scientist, Genetists etc. No How It Works 100%! And The Worse One Of Them All Is Eye Color! Eye Color Is Most Complicated In The Trait Family!
Total23 I see you are on your way to top the biology class. Keep up the enthusiasm in what is a burgeoning field of study.
Thank You Ethnic!
I Second that
Thank You Fuzzybear!
To total23
Like you just said to me the other day,people talk even when they don’t know what they are talking about.Also because they never seen or been exposed to a certain thing,they think it can’t exist
I Totally Agree With You Fuzzybear!
Did You Find Out What White Ethnic Started Off As Black Yet?
To total23
No not yet,this is going to be a tough one
I thought all of them did. Aren’t we all originally black. They migrated to Europe and lightened. We’re all originally black. Just some Europeans are more recent than others. And some of them went farther up north than others. And it also depends on more recent mixing with black due to slave trade and so on.
Not All Of Them Were Black. They Did Not Have Black Features, They Still Had White Features Or Asian But Had Darker Skin Because They Lived In Africa!
I’ve read different. That they were black ALL of them. Some of them had thinner noses or lips etc. But they were black. Just like there are European people with broader noses like alpinid, and also people with way narrow noses like nordid. People come in different variations. But they were black originally, I have read a lot on this, maybe we should bring in Fuzzybear as well. I’ve even seen something on discovery channel a couple of weeks ago of the model they’re making on the first europeans and they were african. I don’t understand why this is so difficult for people to believe and understand. I mean there are scientific facts that prove this. If I’m wrong please correct me, I’m open to other views and I want to learn more.
To total23
Adriana is correct,features have to do with adapting to environments,that’s already been proven.Ancient people in Europe were still black or dark brown for thousand of years,before they started changing white.I thought I showed you how unmixed Africans come with Caucasian features.Now let me know which Africans your talking about ,so I can try and clear this up for you
But Its Kinda Weird, I’ve Eaten Eat So Many Things And My Features Or Skin Don’t Change!
And I Also Read Different That How Everyone Is From Africa But Not Everyone Started Off As Black? And If Everyone Started Off As Black, Then Why Did They Created New Race Like Caucasoid, Mongoloid etc.?
To Total23
Oh my friend,it takes time,lots of time.It takes generations for changes to happen in a population naturally.Sex with different cultures is the only way I know to speed it up.I don’t know what you look like,but I have notice that sometime black people lighten up after being a colder environment for a long time(decades)Doing all things your doing,most likely want change you;your grand kids might be different.I should clear up what I’m saying.When I say black,I’m using it as a umbrella term.Most likely the color was a dark brown.Even though people appear black,they really aren’t;their brown even white people are this.As humans move to different area in and out of Africa,the skin change to suit the environment.The same thing for the facial features(cold or dry climate give you pointy noses,wet and hot give you wide noses etc).Now most of these changes happen because earth climate change.Which cause animals,which is what we are to adapt to fit the new changes.New mutations occurred(pale skin)so the ones in the colder climate could survive.New mutations in DNA are forever occurring.Now we are different varieties of one race,not bunch of different ones,just like with animals;it’s the same thing with us.Also every group has difference within themselves.All black people don’t look alike,all white don’t,and neither do all Asians.
I am sorry,but I have to cut it short again.I hope I answer most of your question
White people are a mutation. this means that at some point a white child was born to black parents–eventually there were enough to choose to mate with each other–who knows how many generations that took? then these same people may have become a tribe and migrated–the further north they went, the more their features changed over thousands of years–did they start out as white? well–their mother was a black female–and they are merely a mutation of that black original–because they are a mutation, they are prone to gene stagnation (sterility and other problems) chinese and every other race all came from the same black African female–look up the human genome project–only the black African female has the phenotypes for ALL races–the Asian has the one for white and their own, and whites have the one for themselves or it is the other way around–other so called races are offshoots of either Asian or caucasian one of them is the last race to be created–but Asian and caucasian are mutations from the original black race–which may explain a lot of racial problems–whites are forever trying to get back to their roots wanting to be darker toned, and wanting to dance, sing and copy blacks in physical features like prominent lips and hips–at the same time, they resent the prowess and existence of blacks because as long as we exist we remind them of all that they are not. they tend to stress the bad and often do not give credit for anything else–then they copy what we do and proclaim themselves the best at it–all of this stems from resentment–they know that no matter what–they will always be the copy and we will always be the real thing–the anger this engenders is palpable. when I have conversations like this with whites, they always get very upset–sometimes to the point of yelling and screaming and crying. I suspect this disconnect and the idea that somehow they are not as connected to the original circle of life threatens them on a visceral level. vanessa may have mixed lineage as do many blacks–even the very dark ones–but she has earned her right to be in the club–and here is the kicker–whites are adamant about claiming the biracial people like Obama and
Vanessa–but funny–they don’t choose that race–despite all the rhetoric and continual put downs of our race–those who can–often want to lay claim to their heritage and race with us–and we let them. They can come home–ours was not a 450 years of denial until they were convenient to us–we always accepted them–just like blacks accept that according to US laws–black blood is dominant and white blood must bend and be perceived as nonexistent when the races mix—unless/until at least 3 generations of only white can dilute that black blood down–then and ONLY for that 4th generation–will they be white–funny thing is–some of the best and brightest REJECT the chance to be white or half white–guess it is not as desireable as white people try to sell it to be.
In fact, I don’t know many blacks who wish they were white–they may like the novelty of sex with whites or even want to make a child–but be white? I don’t even know one black woman who would want to be a white woman despite white society media promotion.
Really–why would we?
I Give Up! I Typed A Explanation Of Why I Am So Skeptical That Black People Are Not The First Race And Then My Computer Just Blew On Me! I’m Sorry But Some Other Day I’ll Type To You About It!
And It Allowed This Message But Not My Long Explanation! Damn My Computer!
To total23
Well if your computer disagrees with you,that should tell you something,LOL.I tell you what,If you can remember what you wanted to say.Maybe you can email it to ethnic,and he can try and put it up.I had problems in the past and after I beg ethnic and promise to buy him a car,he put mine post up for me.
Now what are you so So Skeptical about,you believe there was a race before black?Or maybe you believe that theory that everything started in Asia?Or maybe you believe we all started up independently?Maybe your subscribing to the missing continent theory(BTW,I’m not trying to be funny)?I have other thing to tell you,but I wanted to see what your Explanation was first,before I do that.
to Total23
Don’t get mad, I’m just curious,you said you’ve eaten all these type of food,but your skin hasn’t change.No offense,but why are you hoping or trying to change your skin color?
U Just Wanna Start Shit Don’t You?
Vanessa Williams Mother And Father Look Like Multiracial People.
Mother And Father:
http://www.vanessawilliams.de/mag_jet1099p1.jpg
Father:
http://www.blackwebportal.com/wire/DA.cfm?ArticleID=2546
Mother:
http://www.limcollege.edu/gallery-images/fearless/_N0X9109.jpg
Here Is A Video Where She States Her Ethnicity, Go To 3:30:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxB7Sc4rwNs
Anyways I Love You VANESSA WILLIAMS. YOU ARE A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN!
Nice find Total23
Thanks For Using My Info Ethnic!
Thanks for contributing to the site Total23.
Admin
i was a contestant in the 79-80 miss black teenage pageant pittsburgh and ms. moore told me that june holmes of butler county would never win because she looks like a white woman and it’s not appropriate. i said “why do you keep taking her money year after year if you know she isn’t going to win?”. she walked over to mrs. bryant and came back to me “if you want to stay in this pageant, keep your mouth shut”. i told my parents what had happened. they said “we already told you about the eastern stars and elks, so don’t pretend like you don’t know. your not going to win either because of the way you look”. here is my question “if white americans knew that vanessa williams is black why didn’t the my people just except it?”
she’s the daughter of a black woman and white man, show an interview with her parents, besides skin color doesn’t mean much, my great-grandmother was the daughter of a native americian man and she had children of different skin color, my mother brown skin as well my father but i came out light my sister dark.
Her father is a light skin black man. Her mother is black. She went to Syracuse. Know people who worked for her. She is light skin black but both parents are black and they are not immediately sure where the light skin came from.
I forgot all about those people