Random Racialness: Are East Indians Black?

I ran across this unscientific Topix 'survey' yesterday. The opinion votes and comments give an interesting window, however limited, into how some people, especially natives of India, view themselves and others.

As for an accurate answer, I would say no and yes. Indians are descendants of homo sapiens who walked out of Africa, over tens of thousands of years, into the Fertile Crescent (Jordan, Syria, Iraq), and closer siblings/cousins to the folks (Caucasoids) that continued north into Europe and east into Asia. Their skin lightened by virtue of the higher latitude (less sun), compared to sub-Sahara Africa, but re-darkened in degrees as they settle farther south in the direction of the equator. They are a great example of the genetically labile (adaptable) nature of skin, base on the environment. Their dark skin makes them no more or less related to Africans, than anyone else. Skin color, in and of itself, tells nothing of genetic kinship. In fact, there are Africans (to this day) that are also just as unrelated to each other, although both have dark skin (here).

Survey comments (here).

James C. Collier

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