Twins Have Different Skin Color

RedGlitter · Post by **RedGlitter** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 10:16 pm

British Twins Have Different Skin Color

October 27, 2006, 12:34 PM CDT

LONDON -- A pair of British twin boys has been born with different skin color, a rare genetic occurrence according to experts.

In an interview with Britain's Sky News program, mother Kerry Richardson said that the boys were both born white but as they've gotten older one of the boys got darker and the other lighter.

Today, she says, the twins attract attention wherever they go.

Richardson is of mixed race, with Nigerian and English heritage, while the father is white.

A genetics expert at Oxford University says such births are rare, as the genes that cause skin color normally mix together. In this case, he says, it appears the genes for skin color didn't combine for some reason and the boys may have inherited different genetic codes from their mother.

Copyright © 2006, The Associated Press

Patsy Warnick · Post by **Patsy Warnick** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 11:39 pm

I believe that happened here in the U. S. recently. Interesting

Remember Dinah Shore - she had twins and it ruined her career since her twins were African American - she had no idea she carried that gene, this happened back in late '50's - '60's, she gave them up for adoption.

Patsy

RedGlitter · Post by **RedGlitter** » Sat Oct 28, 2006 12:49 am

Patsy Warnick;443040 wrote: I believe that happened here in the U. S. recently. Interesting

Remember Dinah Shore - she had twins and it ruined her career since her twins were African American - she had no idea she carried that gene, this happened back in late '50's - '60's, she gave them up for adoption.

Patsy

She gave them up because of *that?!*

No, I don't think I did know about that, Patsy, but I find it really intriguing! I'll take heart that she gave them up because of the societal attitude during that time but still, my gosh!

cherandbuster · Post by **cherandbuster** » Sat Oct 28, 2006 6:22 am

RedGlitter;443051 wrote:

She gave them up because of *that?!*

No, I don't think I did know about that, Patsy, but I find it really intriguing! I'll take heart that she gave them up because of the societal attitude during that time but still, my gosh!

I didn't know that either!

In this day and age, I doubt she would have done it. But it's still hard to believe that a mother would give up her children for a reason like that

buttercup · Post by **buttercup** » Sat Oct 28, 2006 6:54 am

i have an african friend who's partner is mixed race scottish & polish, he has dark hair & eyes & yet thier little boy has fair skin, blonde hair & big blue eyes

Richard Bell · Post by **Richard Bell** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 12:34 am

Patsy Warnick;443040 wrote: Remember Dinah Shore - she had twins and it ruined her career since her twins were African American - she had no idea she carried that gene, this happened back in late '50's - '60's, she gave them up for adoption.

I couldn't find anything about that on a Google search.

I did read in the Wikipedia article on Dinah Shore that "rumours" about her African-American ancestry caused her to lose popularity in the southern U.S. in the early '60s.

The same article says she was born in Tennessee (1918) to Russian Jewish immigrants, so it seems that would preclude any African ancestry.

I found no mention in the Google hits of her alledged twins.

The usually reliable snopes.com doesn't have any entries for Dinah.

Chickadee · Post by **Chickadee** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 7:21 am

We're a little more enlightened today, but still have a long way to go!

Did you hear about the woman who went for artificial insemination and became pregnant with twins? When they were born, one was obviously African American and so they investigated at the clinic. Seems the person in charge of such things decided it wasn't necessary to clean the syringe every single time, so there were two different fathers for these boys. What a shocker! So her husband was the biological father of one of the boys, and she located the other man, hoping to help the AfricanAmerican child understand his heritage and just promote some interaction with his biological father. The man didn't want anything to do with the boy. Sad, but still he had his "real" family. The boys entered twins contests - as the least alike set of twins. They were disqualified from winning because of the two-father thingy.

Marie5656 · Post by **Marie5656** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 9:33 am

cherandbuster;443178 wrote: I didn't know that either!

In this day and age, I doubt she would have done it. But it's still hard to believe that a mother would give up her children for a reason like that

I can see why she did it THEN..back in the 50's. And wasn't she from the south on top of it?? I agree it probably would not be done today...in most areas of this country.

Richard Bell · Post by **Richard Bell** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 11:24 am

Marie5656;444201 wrote: I can see why she did it THEN..back in the 50's. And wasn't she from the south on top of it?? I agree it probably would not be done today...in most areas of this country.

...but it's entirely probable that it's not true. There isn't any evidence for it.

I noted in my post that Dinah's parents were Russian Jews.

People of African heritage did not live in 19th century Russian shtetls.

Dinah was a southerner who became an enormous star in the '50s. She angered a lot of segregationists by performing with black singers, and for holding enlightened views on race relations.

The rumours about her African - American heritage were started by racists to discredit her in the southern USA.

Let's not drag a deceased person's name through the mud by spreading 50 year old untruths, concocted by racists.

Marie5656 · Post by **Marie5656** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 11:39 am

Richard, you have a point. Let me rephrase my comment to say that it would not have been unusual for a southern white woman in the 50's to give up a bi-racial child for adoption..considering the times.

Richard Bell · Post by **Richard Bell** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 12:00 pm

Marie5656;444334 wrote: Richard, you have a point. Let me rephrase my comment to say that it would not have been unusual for a southern white woman in the 50's to give up a bi-racial child for adoption..considering the times.

Thanks, Marie.

I wasn't accusing anybody here of stirring up ugly innuendo, but I wanted to make the point that there is no evidence for the story, and a brief whip-'round the internet told me that Dinah did annoy the segregationists, who tried to ruin her career.

I remember her syndicated afternoon talk show from the '70s. The woman always presented herself with class, elegance, grace, and good humour .

Ironic to think that there is no question whatsoever about the African heritage of the all-time queen of afternoon TV chat shows. I suppose there are still some misguided individuals out there who hold that against her.

Marie5656 · Post by **Marie5656** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 12:03 pm

Out of curiosity, Richard....we all know the history here..but how are blacks or other minorities treated up your way??

Richard Bell · Post by **Richard Bell** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 12:37 pm

Marie5656;444359 wrote: Out of curiosity, Richard....we all know the history here..but how are blacks or other minorities treated up your way??

Like anywhere else, it depends on the individual's attitude.

My neck of the woods (200 km east of Toronto, and a mere 60 something miles north of Rochester) were settled 230 years ago by Loyalists from the NE United States. My maternal ancestors settled here in 1778. They came from Connecticut. A large group of Mohawk Loyalists from New York state settled here at the same time. Tyendenaiga Mohawk Territory lies about 10 km east of my town.

Anyway, this area was (and still is) very White Anglo-Saxon. Much of Canada was overwhelmingly white European , until the '60s. Visible minority immigrants mostly settled in the larger cities.

Now, as people from Toronto have started to move away from the city, it is becoming quite common to see all kinds of folks out and about the town. That has changed dramatically around here within the last decade.

The overwhelming majority of the population is cool with it. Most people welcome the effect that big city people, regardless of race, have on the sleepy, small town culture that was dominant here. The cultural scene here is much more sophisticated and vibrant than it used to be.

Of course, you'll still encounter some who hold prejudiced opinions. Fortunately, nobody I know.

Damn, it's windy here !! How's things on your side of the lake ?

RedGlitter · Post by **RedGlitter** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 12:44 pm

I don't think we were disgracing the dead. Just having a discussion. Dinah's probably happy at this point for any celebrity she might be getting. :-3

Richard Bell · Post by **Richard Bell** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 1:01 pm

RedGlitter;444408 wrote: I don't think we were disgracing the dead. Just having a discussion. Dinah's probably happy at this point for any celebrity she might be getting. :-3

I know her name came up parenthetically, but that's how thse rumours and urban legends sustain themselves. (The one about a certain company's logo comes to mind. )

People read these things, and absorb them.

The story seemed so out of character to Dinah's public persona that I thought I should offer what I discovered on the internet, instead of perpetuating the rumour.

cherandbuster · Post by **cherandbuster** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 2:06 pm

Richard Bell;444403 wrote: Damn, it's windy here !! How's things on your side of the lake ?

It's crazy windy here in Massachusetts!

Gusts between 50-60 mph.

A great day to stay in and hang out in the Garden :p :-6

Marie5656 · Post by **Marie5656** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 2:23 pm

cherandbuster;444478 wrote: It's crazy windy here in Massachusetts!

Gusts between 50-60 mph.

A great day to stay in and hang out in the Garden :p :-6

We are having bad winds here too. I thought I heard you were having power outages out your way?

cherandbuster · Post by **cherandbuster** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 2:27 pm

Marie5656;444501 wrote: We are having bad winds here too. I thought I heard you were having power outages out your way?

Yup

We lost power yesterday, but only for a minute

My sis-in-law lost power for the whole day yesterday

It's nasty out there! :guitarist