Are black siblings assumed to have different fathers?

[DarlingNikki]

ST. LOUIS - Jacqueline "Jackie" Donahue, a sister of Grammy-winning rapper Nelly, died Thursday at a St. Louis hospital after a long battle with leukemia, the artist's publicist said.

Donahue had been diagnosed with leukemia on March 29, 2001. The cancer was in remission for nearly two years before she suffered a relapse, prompting Nelly to arrange a number of bone marrow drives. A match was never found.

Publicist Jane Higgins said Nelly and Donahue, who had the same father, were very close as they grew older. Donahue, a 31-year-old mother of two, worked as Nelly's stylist until her illness forced her to leave that position.

In March 2003, Nelly and Donahue formed a campaign called "Jes Us 4 Jackie" to find donors for Donahue and others, and to raise awareness about bone marrow donations.

Donahue's family said in a statement they were "deeply saddened" by her death and offered their thanks for those who had supported her and the bone marrow drives.

first off, i'm sorry she wasn't able to overcome her battle with leukemia.

okay...who da hell thought it was necessary to add that they both had the same father? is it now assumed that black siblings don't share the same parents? i really want to know because there really was no need to even add that statement. i'm beginning to wonder if maybe it is assumed these days that a black woman with more than one kid was impregnated by more than one man.

someone help me understand this...

[Spike-X]

Perhaps they have the same father, but different mothers?

[Sir Tim Drake]

Is that an AP article? If not, maybe you should write in and complain, because it sure doesn't sound like proper journalistic practice. It is probably racist to state that black siblings have the same father, if it is not relevant, since one wouldn't normally provide that information about white siblings.

[DarlingNikki]

Perhaps they have the same father, but different mothers?

AHA!

now that would make sense. maybe they had different moms! okay, i'm calm now...until i find out they had the same mom, then i'm gonna be pissed.

[DarlingNikki]

spike, you were right. she was his half-sister.

now i have to ask myself if there really is no such thing as black siblings having both the same parents :(

[phoenixrising]

Um....I don't think this was a race thing at all. I think you might be jumping the gun a bit.

From a journalistic standpoint, it seems to me that they stated they had the same father because 1. they have different last names (which could be by marriage or not) 2. judging from the "grew closer as they got older", they did not grow up in the same home and 3. could, as Spike said, have had different mothers.


I have to state this all of the time about my siblings because we all have different last names. I don't see why this is a race issue at all.

[Spike-X]

spike, you were right.

No finer words hath e'ere been spaketh!

[DarlingNikki]

Um....I don't think this was a race thing at all. I think you might be jumping the gun a bit.

From a journalistic standpoint, it seems to me that they stated they had the same father because 1. they have different last names (which could be by marriage or not) 2. judging from the "grew closer as they got older", they did not grow up in the same home and 3. could, as Spike said, have had different mothers.


I have to state this all of the time about my siblings because we all have different last names. I don't see why this is a race issue at all.

you're right. it's not.

i guess the flag flew up because i'm surrounded by co-workers who make little jokes about "welfare moms and their five babies by six different fathers". the cynic in me started to believe this was a widely believed notion. i stand corrected (and THANK GOD FOR THAT)

[DarlingNikki]

No finer words hath e'ere been spaketh!

did you just ask for a spanking? cuz if you did, i'm down with it.

[Spike-X]

i'm surrounded by co-workers who make little jokes about "welfare moms and their five babies by six different fathers". the cynic in me started to believe this was a widely believed notion. i stand corrected (and THANK GOD FOR THAT)

I see this as a sterotype that's applied to poor folks in general, not just poor black folks.

[Sir Tim Drake]

All right, I retract my knee-jerk reaction. :)

[Spike-X]

did you just ask for a spanking? cuz if you did, i'm down with it.
Eek! Strong powerful woman!

*runs away*

[Alex]

now i have to ask myself if there really is no such thing as black siblings having both the same parents :(
I can think of three cases.
...um.....all three sets of sibilings live with either a grandmother or just the mother, but they have the same parents!

[StoneGold]

For whatever it's worth, the article should have either actually said half-sister or same father and different mothers, because otherwise it does come kind of out of nowhere. But, as pointed out, just sloppiness.

[Dennis K]

There are quite a few reasons why it would have been phrased like that, no need to automatically assume the worst.

[Alex]

For whatever it's worth, the article should have either actually said half-sister or same father and different mothers, because otherwise it does come kind of out of nowhere. But, as pointed out, just sloppiness.
According to my AP stylebook, they can't say half sister.
...
I made that up, i lost the AP book after i got an A in my journalism classes.
I figured that A ment i knew enough, and therefor, had no need for books.

[Deathstroke]

spike, you were right. she was his half-sister.


Nikki be happy?

YAAY!

Mad Nikki, something no one want to see.

[mattbib]

My sister has three kids by the same black guy. But when I tell people that my sister's kids are mixed, I'm always asked if they all have the same father.

[Shellhead]

Where did this expression come from: "my baby's daddy" ?

I never heard that one until about 4 years ago, and now I hear it everywhere.

[The Dosadi Experiment]

maybe they did it because with cases of leukemia you usually find a donor who comes from your direct family. Full-brother can give marrow to a full-sister or something like that... I think.

[Solaris]

For whatever it's worth, the article should have either actually said half-sister or same father and different mothers, because otherwise it does come kind of out of nowhere. But, as pointed out, just sloppiness.


Yep. I think it was a case where the reporter forgot that not everyone knows what he/she knows. The "half-sister" part, and the father part, may be relevent because of genetics (people worrying if the other woman will develop the disease) or other concerns.

As to the original question, I haven't heard of people assuming a person's kids may have different fathers or mothers, unless there's a very strong difference in appearance. Given that I've got dark hair and brown eyes, and Troy med. brown hair and hazel eyes, I'm surprised we don't get more of that about Finn, who has blond hair and blue eyes and very fair skin. heh.

For that matter, though, I *did* feel a bit insulted at the grocery store one night... I had Finn at the register, and he was talking about wanting to go home. The way he said it at that time was "want to go to Mommy Daddy house," because that's what he called "home". The cashier heard him, looked at my grey hair, and assumed I was Finn's grandmother.

:eek:

I was *not* happy. (Though it's kinda funny now.)

[Slappy san]

Yep. I think it was a case where the reporter forgot that not everyone knows what he/she knows. The "half-sister" part, and the father part, may be relevent because of genetics (people worrying if the other woman will develop the disease) or other concerns.

As to the original question, I haven't heard of people assuming a person's kids may have different fathers or mothers, unless there's a very strong difference in appearance. Given that I've got dark hair and brown eyes, and Troy med. brown hair and hazel eyes, I'm surprised we don't get more of that about Finn, who has blond hair and blue eyes and very fair skin. heh.

For that matter, though, I *did* feel a bit insulted at the grocery store one night... I had Finn at the register, and he was talking about wanting to go home. The way he said it at that time was "want to go to Mommy Daddy house," because that's what he called "home". The cashier heard him, looked at my grey hair, and assumed I was Finn's grandmother.

:eek:

I was *not* happy. (Though it's kinda funny now.)

If you were dressed like you avatar...you wouldnt have had that problem. :)

[Slappy san]

My sister has three kids by the same black guy. But when I tell people that my sister's kids are mixed, I'm always asked if they all have the same father.

How do you respond to that?

[howyadoin]

If you were dressed like you avatar...you wouldnt have had that problem.Man's got a point.

[Slam_Bradley]

i guess the flag flew up because i'm surrounded by co-workers who make little jokes about "welfare moms and their five babies by six different fathers". the cynic in me started to believe this was a widely believed notion. i stand corrected (and THANK GOD FOR THAT)


This was sloppy writing. I will say that the stereotype you raise above has a grain of truth in it. I deal every day with Moms with three kids with three Dads. And I'm not talking black mom's here, because I'm in Idaho and there are only 13 black people in the state. This is an issue that cuts across races. And it can cause a lot of problems.

[howyadoin]

I should point out that my brother and sister and I all have different fathers.

Of course, my sister is adopted...

[Smarty Jones]

"I have to state this all of the time about my siblings because we all have different last names. I don't see why this is a race issue at all."

It COULD be a race thing, if misapplied. Census statistics show that some 60 percent of African-American homes are female-headed, and that nearly 70 percent of African-American children are born out of wedlock. Within that, there could be some assumptions cast about the whole community.