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
Vanessa Williams and her brother, were raised in Millwood, a suburb of New York City located in Westchester. Her parents, Milton and Helen, both music teachers, are also each half-white and half-black.
Vanessa Williams’s father is not half-black, half-white. I know this because we’re first cousins. Her father is black, Native american and white.
I am 90 percent black and 10 percent white
And I’m Dolly Parton!
Lol, I’m Just Joking!
First of all–Bored is copying that name–but the only
I have to say is take an anthropology 100 class–and then you won’t be trying to get away from being black–here is the AMERICAN definition of BLACK-a person with 1/8 negro blood period end of story.
What happens is that a person who denies their black roots looks at someone who is whiter than they are and in this case beautiful they feel exposed and try to “whiten” that person. I can assure you that Vanessa could care less, she is comfortable being black, like millions of others in this country that pass you on the street you see at as restaurant or mall and you think they are white..everyone is not a Beypornce I mean Beyonce trying to get away from being a black girl in America..
The comments here simply express lack of knowledge…I taught anthro at BMCC-NY-2001-2003–we now have deciphered the HUMAN GENOME CODE–SO FAR OUR ancestors are from Africa–starting with “Lucy” and talking about nationalities is irrelevant..we are all mixed and I mean all, bragging about being white is for political reasons and to pretend to have special privileges.
Make sure you understand the last paragraph.
Bored
February 11, 2011 at 6:05 am
Bored says:
February 10, 2011 at 7:04 pm
Everyone the world is getting smaller and smaller and everyone is mixing. People can be mixed but in different ways, no two families are alike. I consider myself mixed although neither parent is white, they both have the same ancestry (black/native american/white). My maternal great grandmother and grandmother had very straight hair and this certainly was not from Africa. My great grandmother believed her father to be white and she looked part white. Her family hid her anytime he came around, she had red hair like a fox. My maternal grandfather was a half bred, his mother was half white/half native American as a result of a rape. His father was black. Another great mother (paternal) was half native american/half white with blue eyes. All of these people have passed on, but I knew them all. My grandfather said that I looked like his grandmother who was native american. Should I ignore my ancestors because they were not black or all black. I carry their DNA. Of course I have African ancestry as well, but I choose to acknowledge the whole package. I am not a full blooded African, Native American nor White. Me and my sisters are often mistaken for Hispanic, but I definitely see the Native American in all of us, even my niece and nephews. I refuse to say African American because it’s just not true, no more than saying I am only Native American. This country has got to give up racial classifications, because and the end of the day we are all just people in search of happiness.
Bored says:
February 10, 2011 at 7:04 pm
Everyone the world is getting smaller and smaller and everyone is mixing. People can be mixed but in different ways, no two families are alike. I consider myself mixed although neither parent is white, they both have the same ancestry (black/native american/white). My maternal great grandmother and grandmother had very straight hair and this certainly was not from Africa. My great grandmother believed her father to be white and she looked part white. Her family hid her anytime he came around, she had red hair like a fox. My maternal grandfather was a half bred, his mother was half white/half native American as a result of a rape. His father was black. Another great mother (paternal) was half native american/half white with blue eyes. All of these people have passed on, but I knew them all. My grandfather said that I looked like his grandmother who was native american. Should I ignore my ancestors because they were not black or all black. I carry their DNA. Of course I have African ancestry as well, but I choose to acknowledge the whole package. I am not a full blooded African, Native American nor White. Me and my sisters are often mistaken for Hispanic, but I definitely see the Native American in all of us, even my niece and nephews. I refuse to say African American because it’s just not true, no more than saying I am only Native American. This country has got to give up racial classifications, because and the end of the day we are all just people in search of happiness.
@bored
It’s obvious You haven’t see many Africans,you’ve seen one type and put it in you head that’s the only kind.Now your ggm believed her father to be,white but you don’t know,and it’s been shown on here,red hair doesn’t mean white blood.Also you wanna love a heritage your family didn’t seem to love very much,if they had to hide your ggm away.And African American doesn’t mean your just black,you think the people who came up with these things were just black?No,they were just as mixed as you,and yet still called themselves black people
wtf If people ask me what I am I say Black, but not African American. All of my ancestors have been in this country for many years. One would have to go back hundreds of years to find a full blooded African in my family (like alot of us). Prefixes like African American, Asian American etc. should be reserved for people who have recently arrived or are only one or two generations from their original country. Do you see white people calling themselves European Americans? No they are just Americans, so should their black counterparts be called. The term African American somehows lessen your rights to this country, kind of as if you were a visitor in your own land. There is nothing wrong with being African at all but the term does not apply to most blacks. If I went to any country in Africa I would be a foreigner. One of my mother’s best friends son went to Africa (and yes he is just as mixed as me), was called white. This is not accurate, I think a more appropriate term would be colored. However, when the going got rough they demanded that he leave the country or else they were going to kill him. I meet lot’s of people just as mixed as I am and at the end of the day they are black. I have no problem with that.
To bored
They did colored already,it didn’t stick.Also wouldn’t that word fit anybody?Now your right,we should just be able to call ourselves Americans,but you know were not the ones making the rules.However have to disagree about AA diminishing rights,actually the phrase was in part created to keep that from happening,however I do see your point.
Th funny thing is–ONLY whites and blacks are called by colors and these two groups are contantly pitted against each other in polls, the media and in “studies”. they used to call the chinese “yellow men” now the Amrerican chinese define themselves as “chinese-American” to differentiate from the full blooded chinese presently immigrating here. The Japanese do the same thing–they lay claim to their heritage and at the same time, also want to acknowledge their citizenry.
That is what some blacks want to do–with so many from Africa coming here and also blacks from Europe, America, etc, blacks who have been here for hundreds of years want to do like everyone else and acknowledge their African ancestry AND their American citizenry. They do this to differentiate from European or Carribean or other blacks from other regions.
And no–we do not have “european americans” but we do have many europeans, who make it clear to acknowledge their “scottish-american” ancestry or their “irish american ancestry”
At the end of the day, blacks like everyone else should be able to define themselves as they want to–if we can now call Indians, “native americans” Mexican–hispanics, Puerto ricans, dominicans and others –Latinos–we can allow blacks the luxury of defining their background.
For some reason, from reparations, to acknowledging ANY black contributions–whites want to decide and dictate what we like, who we are, how we describe ourselves and are affronted that we dare to make that choice for ourselves.tell us–Why are people as light as the palest ivory or as dark as ebony all called BLACK?
Why are there only 2 races now defined by color and why, why why why why–do whites spend so much time and energy on polls, studies and data to compare their health, education, intellect, beauty,, income, speech, crime rate and everything else to blacks?
Keep in mind that when people compare they usually do not compare themselves to a known inferior–they usually compare themselves to a perceived better or rival–which is it? Do whites see blacks as their eternal rival–500 years after slavery began–they still copy, still ignore or fail to give any credit for anything to blacks and fail to allow us to just be–and of course STILL compare…WHY IS THAT?
african american or black or people of color–why in the world would anyone take offense on how a person chooses to define themselves? Maybe we should all start taking offense that some people call themselves white–since other than albinos–few really are—everyone –especially white people–need to give all this stuff a rest.
You are only mixed if your parents are different races.
Egypt is in Africa, those people have straight hair. What about countries like Somalia and ethiopia…different variety of hair. All from africa sooooo……………………….
IMHO, the more indigenous Amerindian blood one has, the more right they have to be in the USA. If you are full-blooded English, Irish, German or some other white ethnicity and are a xenophobe, I say go back to the country which spawned your ancestors.
Well never wonder why they confuse you for Hispanic, since they are a mixed of Native American, White and African
Latinos are a mix of african, native american and european. Hispanics are usually indigenous native american mixed with European spanish and/or irish and german.
Hispanic means world spanish–indicating those descended from a mixing of Spanish conquistadors and native people.
Mexicans (especially mexican women) do not care for black females–so % wise there is very little mix of black or African with Mexicans. Puerto ricans and other Latinos LOVE blacks and embrace that part of their ancestry–so they have no problem acknowledging, marrying and loving black females and males.
the more whites infiltrated various cultures (including Indian and the Middle East) the more they seem to have infected people with hatred of their natural skin color. In almost every country whites colonized the people end up trying to be a light as possible to curry white favor and often plot to stay light. This is the latent infection of racism. This happened to blacks in slavery also with lighter blacks being treated better–even now, many lighter blacks are told to either marry white or marry other light blacks–it is not because blacks think whites are better–it is because many blacks and Indians and Japanese and Mexicans and Latinos believe that in a white dominated culture–the closer you get to their own skin color the more opportunities come your way and the more acceptance–often then, people marry not for better treatment for their own skin color–they are investing in lighter colors for the next generation (so their kids will be more accepted) this is why you will often see the darkest blacks with a white person–they often have beef with whites and did not like how they were treated–they are determined to make better lives for their kids by having better (lighter) babies–a lot of Africans are doing this too–the real question is–why are whites complicit in this?
First Of all everyone if you watch the show who do u think u are on friday night she says in the show her MOTHER-IS BLACK her FATHER is Black with White mixtures her FATHER’S Grandpa is mixed black and white which makes her like 75% Black which she refers herself as she just came out with very fair skin with bright eyes which comes from her family backround
Her Father’s Grandpa Would Be Her Great Grandpa Which Means She Would Be 87.5% Black! And Another Thing, Yes Her Father Identifies As Black But His Whole Ancestry Was Mulatto (Someone who was Half White And Half Black or A White Person With Visible Black Ancestry and vice versa). And If You Watched The Show You Would See That His Brother Looked Clearly White. And Plus In The Show It Show That Two Of His Grandpa Were Mulatto Even Some Of His Fore-mothers Were Mulatto! So She Is Way Less Than 75% Black. But She Still Is A Black Woman Only Because She Self Identifies.
To total23
Hold on man your making assumptions,your throwing % out there without really knowing all the facts.Also looking white doesn’t mean that what’s the largest % is,sometime you do take the most trait from what your the least of.My cousin just had a baby a few days ago,both parent are very dark,yet the baby looks like a little white child(it’s kinda funny,every baby in this family that I’ve seen is born like that).I tell you this because you know my mixture.This is my 2nd cousin she less,I’m basing my opinion on the fact that her father looks like he just got off the slave ship(joking).Now I’m saying the mixture in her is most likely less than mine,yet her child and sister children have all been born white looking(they do darken as they get older).
Ok now your saying Vanessa is black only because She Self Identifies that way?Well I asks this before,what if this man Neguinho da beija flor:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a9/Neguinho_da_Beija-flor.jpg
If you saw him on the street,and he said don’t call me black I’m white,and you not knowing his mixture(67.1% European, 31.5% African and 1.4% Amerindian),would you look at him like he was crazy?
FUZZYBEAR I Love You And All (No Homo) But When U Think I Am Assuming Things Ask Me What I Mean Before You Run To Conclusions. I Clearly Understand That You Could Have A Small Percentage Of Another Race And Have Its Features.
But I First Replied Because Of What Brea Calculations. She Was Saying That Vanessa’s Great Grandfather Was Mixed With Black And White And That She Is Like 75% Black! And Then I Said That She Is Not 75% Black If Her Great Grandfather Is The One That Is Mixed; She Would Be 87.5%. But In The Show It Shows That On Her Paternal Side Most Of Her Ancestors (Great Grandfathers, Great Great Grandparents, Grandparents etc.) Were Self Identified Blacks But Were Actually Mixed. And I Am Saying That If That Is So, Then That Would Mean She Is Quite Less Than 75% Black (Which Was Her Assumption), Given Also Her Mother’s History.
I Used Her Father’s Brother For A Reason To Tell Brea Of How Her Family Is Formed.
So I Can Make Assumptions, Why, Because I Know, I Have Read And Watch These Things Online. I Am Not Throwing Percentages Out There, I Saw That Show, And I’ve Seen Her History!
And Yes She Is Only Black Because She Only Self Identifies As Black; Why? Becasue The Way She Grew Up, The Racism Towards Her, And That Her Parents Raised Her In A Black HouseHold!
And Let Me Tell You This! The People Who You Always Show As An Example Where A Little Means A Lot Is Not Really Relevant Towards This Situation. You Show People Who Are Majority White But Look Black; But That’s The Thing You Always Show These Kind Of Proof, To Be Honest All That Proves Is That Black Genes Are Dominant. And There Is A Article And There Are People Who Say Things Like That, And That Is Also What People Expect. When They See The Child Born To Parents Of Different Race, People Are Gonna Expect The Child To Look More Black, Or Too Look Mixed With Black!
So You Should Understand What I Am Trying To Say, Show Numerous Of People Who Are Mixed With Black But Looks White. Show NUMEROUS Of People Who Are Mixed With Black But Look Asian, Or Native American Etc. You Are Only Showing People Who Are White And Have Significant Black Admixture And They End Up Looking Black; All That Shows Is That Black People Have Dominant Genes (No Offense). Show Something Else.
HA HA! Let Me See You Reply To This!
To total23
Ok ,next time you want me to hear you out before I say something,Ok fair enough.
Your words(So I Can Make Assumptions),but see that’s just it Assumptions,basically your own opinion;doesn’t mean that’s how thing are or were.My ancestral line is similar to hers,even worse.Am I only black because I Self identify that way.If that’s the case the vast majority of the black population here are only self-identifying,including yourself and your not even here.
Anyhow I am not being mean,don’t have me come through this screen and choke you. I shown Neguinho da beija flor because he would never be seen as white ,because the color of his skin,even though he’s more qualified than vanessa.Who if she was just two shades darker,people would even be talking about her,no matter what her mixture was.Also the majority of the time,I show white people who have recent black heritage,maybe because the comments weren’t directed to you,you haven’t paid them any attention
Also,I don’t think Black Genes Are Dominant,I think it’s a Dominant effect.From my readings,it says the genes that control skin color are additive.This leads me to believe that lets say the( white parent) isn’t as pure as they think they are,which is why the child may come out darker.And when it the (black parent)the comes out whiter,of course this is all my opinion(my Assumption)
Ok for now on with you,I will show people like
Walter White:
http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/media_content/m-5972.jpg
Who is self Id as AA,who used his white phenotype to go undercover in white organizations and spy.
Or Anatole Broyard:
http://abagond.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/anatolebroyard.jpg?w=283&h=400
Who lived his life as a white person
Or George herriman
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_-RmoCU6Rm24/Suj6J4WUJAI/AAAAAAAAOsA/cExIrb6NjuQ/GeorgeHerriman.jpg
Lived his life as a white man
http://cdn.bellanaija.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/slash-and-mum.jpg
mother and son:
http://thestudyofracialism.org/forum/bpwk/byrd.jpg
afro-Asian:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_A8xyv2B6oy8/TGTarSLEA9I/AAAAAAAACc0/V4eX_fyJRmM/s1600/asian-afro2.jpg
Thelma Aoyama:
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQNj9c7VaZTzBxfPPmbPWhcZdK9YANlt96Hny6O48BwDnPBnPi2&t=1
judith hill
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_6qgshajzltM/SnFPPbmhh5I/AAAAAAAAGFU/ZwHx9feNfoE/s1600/Judith_Hill_17.jpg
Does this make you happy now?Also stop this admixture stuff,unless your momma and daddy were brother and sister;were all Admixtures
Now you say you have love for a brotha(no homo),but then you say things like this(HA HA! Let Me See You Reply To This!)As if I couldn’t,that’s what hurt
Lol! All Those People You Used I Have Already Seen Them On The Internet With The Exception Of Judith Hill; Way Ahead Of You Bruh! So I Basically Didn’t Learn Anything New! Lol!
I Understand The Black Genes Being Dominant Part! Isn’t Walter White A Quadroon? (Three White Grandparents, One Black Grandparents).
I Remember Reading A Blog That Was Talking About Those Reasons Why A Person Would Self Identify As Black When They Are Actually Mixed Race! And I Think The Vast Majority Of The Black Population Does Self Identify That Way Because Of What I Said! Because They Themselves Could Have Self Identified As A Quadroon, Octoroon etc.!
And For Me Now! I Self Identified As A Canadian Alone!
To Total23
You should recognize them,I first showed them to you in a conversation we had early last year.However I wasn’t try to teach anything new,I was just doing as you asked me to do.I also said I would show people like them in the future.I would have used others then,but these are the easiest to check,for anyone else reading this;since people on here like to call me a liar.Give your big Bruh some credit,for thinking ahead.Don’t worry for you I will used all new people.I kinda wish you had asked me before my other hard-drive crash,I had a bunch of examples then.The funny thing is,did you every explore the rest of the site?All the examples of different phenotypes were there.Bi-culturals ,that had the white phenotype,and the Asian ones.Ethnic shut it down now,but I think it still works.They were real mean over there,nasty comments.
Now like I said,I don’t think the black gene is dominant,I think it’s a additive effect.Also as far a (White)he Id himself as AA.Come to think of it,what the heck does that make me?(one full white,2 mullat/creoles,and one afro-latino)
Well man,I guess as far as you see it,there not very many black people in this country
I Never Called You A Liar! And If I Did I Was Joking! (I’m Just Saying). I Never Knew Your Hard Drive Crashed! And Why Would I Go Back To Read Comments That You Have Written So Long Ago To The Point That I Can’t Find It….You Know How Long That Would Take FuzzB! At Least The Whole Day To The Min!
To total23
Your words(I Never Called You A Liar! And If I Did I Was Joking! )
Mannnnnnnnn! not you,others.I’ve been called liar on here so many times,I began to think it was my new user name.Anyhow I wouldn’t ask you to go back,even I can’t remember where I put things.Also yes my hard drive crash,took everything,all that work.
But He Wouldn’t Call Himself White, He Would Call Himself Mixed Or Just Black. It All Depends On How The World Sees Him And It Also Depends How He Sees Himself! And I Wouldnot Look At Him Crazy! Just Like Most Black People See Halle Berry, Barack Obama And Other Mixed Celebs As Black! I Call Them Mixed Regardless Of How They Self Identify. But I Still Call Them Whatever They Want Me To Call Them As!