In case you hadn’t heard, CNN is going there again. Beginning this Sun at 8pm & 11pm EST/PST, Soledad O’Brien’s Black in America series goes deep inside colorism within our community. Black gets abstract – the One Drop Rule and the Paper Bag Test both get deconstructed. Please consider this post an Open Thread so we can discuss as a community your reactions to the special and to the reality of colorism in America.

Soledad O’Brien and other people profiled in the special ask the questions:
Who is Black?
What is Black?
Who Decides? You – or Society?
Is Black big enough to cover all shades?

A young woman profiled in Who Is Black in America?, Nayo Jones, who is bi-racial says she’s often asked: “Girl you are so pretty! What are you?”

Sound familiar? It might – whether you have been the asker or the receiver. This special explores all the emotions and history surrounding Americans’ continuing need to define one another via skin color.