I grew up in New Orleans, which was the center of the slave trade for centuries.  It was also French, with laws based not on English Common Law but on the Napoleonic Code.  One key difference is that the French legally recognize their illegitimate children, even if one parent was a slave.

So there was a group of prominent, wealthy New Orleanians who were dark skinned, yet not completely black, called Creoles.  If the Jim Crow Laws made little sense, they made even less sense where New Orleans Creoles were concerned.  In fact the lawsuits fighting Jim Crow were brought about in New Orleans, mostly on the behalf of the Creoles.

There was much mixing of the races in the south, and in the early part of the last century mixed race Americans whose skin was light enough could just “pretend” to be white.  It was called “passing”.  Many of these people left the south and moved north where there was less scrutiny over such things. 

With the arrival of the new Pope, Leo XIV, the history of Creole and mixed race Americans has resurfaced.  As it happens, Leo’s family was Creole and from New Orleans, and moved to Chicago for a better life.

Because of this history there are many Americans who have African roots but do not realize it. New DNA tools are turning up some of this.  An article from NPR Fresh Air based on a NYT article.

How a single decision made a century ago split a family in half by race