Who counts as Louisiana Creole? 

This is so true, many Native Americans chose to be considered African Americans right in Homer, Louisiana in efforts to avoid being sent to reservations.

As a daughter of a Louisiana French Creole father, this is a great piece of history! I can listen to this conversation all day!

He was wonderful! So informative. I don't have roots in Louisiana but I enjoyed learning. I feel like if everyone went back to find their ancestors and family trees, we would see we are all more connected than we think.

I am in tears too. I am almost 50 years old and this interview has helped me to release a lot of ideas I know that are wrong. I know my people are Creole and Native American on my mom's side. Her great-grandmother came from Louisiana and my father was Black may God rest both of their souls. Growing up all we knew in that household was that we were Black. But because we didn't look like the other Black kids in school we all had a hard time. We even had other people and kids pulling on our hair accusing us of lying that our hair was real. When we did not wear wigs. That was our own hair! I also went through being rejected by a lot of Blacks because of my skin color and also because of my appearance. My siblings and I went through a lot and also my sister because she was a darker complexion. They would say that she was not my real sister or half-sister when we all knew we had the same father. I to this day identify myself as a Black woman but I also let people know about my ancestry which is Creole along with the Creek Choctaw tribe from Oklahoma. I have the paperwork to prove my ancestry. I am just proud of who I am and if people can't accept me for how I identify then it is not my problem. Ase'!!!!

I'm Creole....and remember when I was in high school in the South, I tried out for cheerleading and I was the only person of color that made squad... everyone said I made it because of my skin tone and long hair.... that really hurt my feelings back then......I learned over time not to let others bother me .....

He hit the nails on the head in “white passing” segment. As a brown skin brown eyed Louisiana creole.. l was excited learning about my history from family. I learned really quickly how colorism made ppl question HOW l could be creole, so l just stopped claiming. Years later l ended up taking two different dna ancestry test and sure enough my family was telling the truth.. My mom really pushed me to learn creole..she was the only one in the family l remember speaking it..but l said No, Spanish was the more popular one so l learned Spanish. I’m learning creole now and she’s happy 😊 So am l.

Goodness, this was such a great interview. Jeremy is so knowledgeable, discussing all the nuances. What a treat this is. Well done!

As a son of New Orleans, who’s ancestry goes far back into Louisiana History, I appreciate this conversation. All my life, I wasn’t Black enough for my own community, and certainly not White enough to pass, not that I ever wanted to pass. Yet, because of coming from an education family, I often didn’t fit in to my own community. Thank you for this conversation.

Brudda Jeremy puts the identity of Creoles culture in a proper perspective. We are a hurt people because choices made from the reaction towards the negative aspects of racism, colorism, classism and even controlled linguistics. Many dark skin Creoles were ostracized because of their phenotypes, hair texture or dialect of speech. As a dark skin person who is a Southeast Louisiana Creole descendant I can attest to being challenged and having to prove my ancestry to claim my Creoleness. We are already at the bottom of the social strata. Denials from societal and cultural inclusion forces one to rebel and exit the norm. Then we begin to create our own communal bubbles with certain rituals and traditions that are now unique unto us. The more African examples have shown up prominently in the foods and music styles such as Gumbo, Jambalaya, Zydeco, Jazz, etc., as we learn about our lineage and heritage. The flavor and rhythms are inherently of African origin but amalgamated with Native and European components. Once again we are a hurt people, we carry these bags around with us and pass it down generationally. I've communicated with Brudda Jeremy and Brudda Nick a few times on their podcast series. And left with more enlightenment after each show which compelled me to research even more about our African Ancestor's lives during the Louisiana colonial period. We still keep certain traditions alive like drumming in Congo Square every Sunday and it's a part of the healing process. The emotions are so real. This series here you put together is a mirror for us look deep into. Please let it to continue to flow because it's truly educational, reflective, helpful and healing. Much Respect.

This was such a wonderful interview. The specific detailed breakdown of the cultural, racial and emotional effects of being/ identify as Creole/Louisiana Creole were so exquisitely discussed in the video. Thank you for the open conversation.

I enjoyed the interview. I’m from a New Orleans Creole family. I also have a lot of roots in other parts of Louisiana. I go between black and Creole depending on who I’m talking to. In Louisiana, it’s almost understood but I feel I need to explain what Creole is to folks outside of Louisiana because many have sooooo many misconceptions about what Creole is.

My family is all colors. my great grandmother looked like a white woman, identified as black/creole, but shadism/colorism was never an issue. We just loved each other. Much darker than my mom and sister but was never treated any differently. I did, however, experience mild texturism. Nobody's perfect. 🤷🏾‍♀️

I’m just finding creole has evolved to identify different people through the years. 1737 South Carolina Gazette defined creole as some one from the islands. Creole is utilized a lot in that area for awhile. For me growing up in St Martinville Louisiana I grew up knowing I was creole and it was a culture a feeling. I can’t remember even having a discussion that it was about race until I left home for the Air Force and brothers from across the states could on reference redbones as creole. Something new to me. My mom was light skinned I just knew she was mullatto, we all have different stories and journeys this is confuSing for me as I delve into my ancestry. Sorry I’m just being briefed here, I’ve been following your journey and appreciate your passion.

Danielle- once again, you hit it out of the park. This interview you had with Jeremy was enlightening for me and I want to thank you again for the time and energy you've shared during your journey. We all have different paths in our lives, and sometimes they are so closely intersected. ❤👏

Such an outstanding interview! I'm trying to find the right words to express my appreciation of Jeremy. I guess I will sum it up by saying that he has a very important voice to be heard, especially in this era of heightened racial tension in this country. Danielle, like Jeremy you are doing IMPORTANT work; you are both "part of fixing it." What you are doing has wider relevance than I think you realize, and I pray that God will use your work according to His good purposes for healing and reconciliation and give you as wide an audience as what you are doing deserves. 👏🏻🙏

Good video. Yes , I think Mr Simien definitely need a RU-vid channel talking about Creole culture and New Orleans history, Arts culture. I agreed with about 40% because my family comes from southern Louisiana ( Lafayette to breux bridge and many did not speak English). Yes, Jeremy is Creole but Creole can be dark people too. Your great granny definitely looks Creole or light skinned black woman to me.

Excellent interview! As a Black American who have a very mixed family history he hit the nail on the head.

I’m proud of the younger generation’s quest to know who they truly are 💖💖💖

Great conversation! I think you hit the jackpot with Jeremy and the two of you may have much insight to share from your personal experience. ❤

What an honest and frank and thorough discussion. My mother was a White passing French speaking creole from Louisiana. MY maternal grandparents were also French speaking creoles from Louisiana. MY maternal grandfather's whole side of the family were White passing. But because of the legacy of the one drop laws, his parents made the decision to stay in Louisiana and identified as Black people.His father had 1/16 Black ancestry. While his mother had 1/8 Black ancestry. MY maternal grandmother was a beautiful much darker skinned woman who had Haitian, French, African and Houma ancestry on both sides of the family. The interesting thing is some of my grandfather's ancestors came from Haiti as free people of color the early 1800s.While some of my grandmother's ancestors came from Haiti as slaves in the 1700s.What is incredible is when I visited my grandmother's people whole still lived in Louisiana in the early 1960s,they spoke different variations of French depending on the generation. Both of my grandmother's parents were still alive in their late 70s.Her maternal grandparents were still alive. As was one paternal grandfather. Lol my mother had to translate to us three kids when the people of her parents generation began to speak in the Dialect. But my maternal grandmother had to translate when her parents,Aunts and Uncles spoke. But she needed help from her parents to translate what her grandparents, great aunts and uncle were speaking. These people could speak good enough English but just felt more comfortable speaking their Dialect amongst family and friends. My maternal grandfather's side spoke standard French and adopted the cajun/creole Dialect as well. THERE were quite a few of his maternal and paternal Aunts and Uncles who decided to leave the state of Louisiana in the late 19th century to pass as White. Two of his paternal Uncles actually moved to France. Eventually they cut ties to the family. Now with Ancestry. Com family members are coming out of the woodwork to reconnect with this branch of the family. Turns out all of his relatives who left Louisiana married into White families and now have descendants. So they are on the same road to discovery as Danielle. The irony is the French relatives are fascinated by the discovery. The American relatives a mixed bag.They all look drop dead White. Which leaves me to ponder the aspects of racial identity in American culture. For some it is about racial purity. For some it is about appearance and the culture and environment in which they were raised. Some relatives honestly said that the discovery of any other ancestry other than African would not change how they view themselves. But how do they come to terms with the African ancestry. No matter how small.What is incredible to me is that some of these relatives have the same features as the much darker relatives in the family. The nose,the lips,the forehead. The only difference being skin color, eye color and color and texture of hair.

I remember being told that a Creole is a native born individual prior to the War of 1812 of any mix of French, Spanish, and African. I remember explaining to a person from the North once that our ancestors in Louisiana did not come from the thirteen Colonies or Ellis Island. We don’t identify as Americans quite in the same way as other groups because we weren’t part of that immigrant community. Add the wrinkle of modern blackness, and I can imagine it’s very complex. The curious thing is that you can tell a very similar story when looking at the colorism associated with the various groups within Indian culture and others who have a color divide within their culture.

Passing destroyed my dad and me. He was 70 when I was born. His mom passed for white while we just got erased and labeled black. I am excited to watch this. Maybe I can learn something to help me try to deal with my truth and this evil society I can't fit into.

Jeremy's input and what he experienced was so different from yours yet so similar. I feel like this is the story of a new homeowner who is looking around in the rooms and wondering why all the walls are painted a neutral colour. As they begin to prepare the walls for new and colourful paint they discover that the walls were of different and bright hues at one time. Due to some advice or edict to previous owners the beautiful bright colours were muted to neutrals to make the interior not stand out and be different from others in the neighbourhood. I am hoping that as you continue to "peel back the paint" that you will find other "long lost" family members who are descendants of that time. Sadly, it was necessary for Lola to make tough decisions to try to survive due to the times that she lived in. They could fill in some more information to fill out your story even more. Finding Lola is diving deep into the sad and racially charged history of the United States, Louisiana, and the eventual merger of the 2. Thank you for continuing to share your journey, Danielle. ❤

Thus was very good! Especially firing black history month. Everything he said about colorism is so true, even if you aren't from Louisiana. Once you identify as black it seems you will be grouped as "light skin" or "brown/dark skin" then sub grouped as "house n-word" vs "field n-word" which means "easier life with privilege" vs "harder life and struggles." AND that's all within the black community. Not realizing that outside of the black community, any color tan with any textured curl makes you black. Jay Z has a song about this- I forget what it's called. But even him with all of his money and advantage, he will always be looked at as black first, not human. The stigma of it all! I will also say it seems that mixed race individuals from Louisiana who were part black and identified as Creole, kind of still shies away from the blackness and enhances the French, which, to me, still shows shame to black culture. Like Jeremy said, we aren't responsible for the past. But I will say, talking about this and educating folks may urge people to look into their history and see how mixed we all really are. We're all humans made of flesh, blood, bones and water. We all bleed red and the money is green for all. Let's be kind and carry on.

I know we definitely had relatives who moved to California from Opelousas, Louisiana.( Who passed as white). As a child, I did asked my Grandmother, who is that "white woman" she was talking to at her parents house. She told me her story and she is our cousin. Her parents didn't teach them Creole, not to hold them back.

How wonderful! This deep and respectful conversation about people and culture in the cross hairs of racism and its consequences after generations of suffering. This same situation exists though without the centuries of history in your country, here in Australia with indigenous and settler communities and families. Some families are divided by skin tone and culture and even both. A person is Indigenous if raised in the community that is culturally indigenous and can be vouched for. Science and DNA research has opened up the reality that we are all human, and we are all challenged everywhere to demolish racism and all its permutations. Keep up your careful work making this warm and heartfelt exploration of history culture and identity. Blessings from Australia

Interestingly my great grandmother’s family identified as Creole.. I remember sharing this information with my half brother who told me I couldn’t possibly have any Creole ancestry because I was too dark.. I was about 9 or 10 and I remember how angry I was because I felt like who was he to tell me what my mother’s family was..My great grandmother spoke French and when she spoke English it was very heavily accentuated with a French accent. I had to concentrate as a child to understand what she was saying 😂

"there are living people who are hurting" -- so appreciate the sensitivity and transparency and truth telling here

I'm from Lake Charles. Oppression has caused irreversible consequences of our communities choices. This the best, most objective discussion I have heard thus far.

I had a summer fellowship in college and a young lady from Louisiana was also there. Early in the summer, she made a point of telling us she was Creole and that her grandmother referred to Black people as the n-word. I thought she was a light skinned Black woman. This was the summer of 1990 and still one of the oddest and unsolicited interactions of my life.

I wonder how many people moved to California from Louisiana and moved fully into the white society there. California received a lot of people from Louisiana.

There's three levels of Creoles the first level of Creoles the ones that were born of the original French or spanish / Portuguese settlers mixed with Native and black could be light or darkskinned. then you have the children of plasage. These children are 4 generations mixed but not this is not the same as the others these descendents usually prided themselves on their lightness these are the so-called quadroons octoroon peoples and their fathers usually came from Means not just regular Joe's like the original Creoles. Then you have the American Creoles. These are the whites settlers of scotch Irish German English descendant who came after the French sold Louisiana. The Americans stole the use the name creole for themselves changing the definition instead of having been the descendants of the early French Spanish Portugues settlers with Indigenous and Black women . It's changed to just being WHITES BORN IN LOUISIANA. Funny how the whites that ended up coming later but didn't want to take over the name of Cajun but they felt it necessary to disenfranchise the original Creoles

Thanks, Great work, appreciate all the effort you have put into this series. People all over the world are engaged in this type of soul searching. Thanks for daring to make the first move and for sharing with us. All the best in your endeavors.

Jeremy, I am so happy you are speaking in this topic. My family identifies as Creole, and we have many family members who are passing and have left us and their community and never looked back. My grandmother who is 97 years old, had and still has siblings passing as White living in California. And, she still hurt in that she has not spoken to her siblings in years. The Creoles who stayed behind (New Orleans), don’t talk about this, it’s almost as if it’s a family secret and because of this, we have lost so many family members. We keep what we think of color and culture from other cultures and we finally have a space to discuss this. Thanks Jeremy. I would live to discuss my experience with you someday.

It’s such a breath of fresh air to see and hear us in front of the camera talk about this. I always felt my family wasn’t the only one experiencing these types of dysfunctions. Damn, these videos really hit home. Even if it’s uncomfortable and/or painful.

One of the prior comments on what “creole” come from the Spanish “criollo” which is what the American-born Spanish were called. Our Latin American food is called comida “criolla” because our food is a mixture of all 3 cultures just like the gumbo Danielle referenced to.

Simply stated, I've always understood creole to be French mixed with African. The Louisiana Territory was purchased from france in 1803. The Louisiana territory encompassed more than just lousiana. It covered several states as we now know them today. It was more than race mixture. It involved the people we call creole whole lives. Their mannerisms, language, ethnic identity, everything. He is wrong about a few things. That's all I have to say.

My Grandmother and I knew some Simien's. I remember my grandmother when I asked her what it means to be Creole, I had heard that it meant you being natural Born in the state of Louisiana and I wanted to deny or confirm that by asking my grandmother. Because I had heard of some generalize opinion about it online. Now as far as I mentioned, my dad is Creole via his mother (my Grandmother ) that's a known fact she was born and grew up in Louisiana, Lafayette. So when I asked her would I be considered Creole she said only in blood but not culturally, in the fact that I wasn't born in Louisiana but I have the ancestry, this still confuses me to this day but when you talk about actualized naturalized citizen born but when you ask other people, some have different interpretations like everything else, this could also be confusing when you're talking to Creoles from say Texas or maybe parts of the bayou Rivers along the way from Louisiana to maybe Mississippi upward or whatever. This is very interesting dialogue

I recently found out that I’m descended from the white passing Creole people who left their family. They even changed their last name spelling in 1918 so it’d be harder to find them. I never knew much about my grandpa and his parents. I just knew that his mom was French Cajun from Louisiana. I had tried to find info on that side of the family for the longest time! My search would always end right at my great great grandfather and there wasn’t hardly any info about him. I tried my search again this past summer and finally got all the links to that line of the family and found out we descended from the Creole Free People of Color who were in Louisiana and Haiti, but my direct line went for white passing and abandoned their Creole family ties which is why it took me so long to finally figure out where my grandpa came from. Your vid is awesome at addressing some questions I had. I just gotta add that it was heartbreaking and bitter sweet for me to learn about why that side of my family was shrouded in mystery for most of my life and I finally uncovered the truth.

LOVE how informative AND how TRUTHFUL this conversation is about how colorism has played into this topic. Also just really cool to see how awesome of a state Louisiana is. ❤

the term creole is of spanish origin. spanish citizens born in the iberian peninsula and their descendants were referred to as "peninsulary" . "creoles" were spanish citizens born in one of the spanish territories like louisiana.

Thank you for this video, its so important that these conversations are had and that people can cut through the oppressive ideas and concepts of self-identity that have been applied to us. When people ask me about my ethnicity I just say Creole because that gives respect to all of my ancestry African/Islander, French, German not just one particular part and not just skin color or superficial things

I love that you are unpacking your history, your identity, in this way. As a person a Creole decent, we lost our language, and to this day have family members choosing to live outside of the family. A family member has recently connected to her son and explained how it was he grandmother (he was told) that pushed this distance with his mother to pass and live a life outside of who she was. He too is excited to know this side of his family.

I find the definition of Creole has a differing meaning outside of Louisiana, where outside it is largely understood as mixed race usually French/African blood, while the definition inside the state and in particular in New Orleans the dynamics are claimed by multiple Groups, indigenous, exclusively Euro-French, Mulatto, Cajun- Spanish root etc...as your guest is articulating in this post, lots of debate on this within' the city recently, great info, be encouraged!

Let's talk about the elephant in the room. As complicated as life could be for Louisiana Creoles, as they faced brutal racism and debilitating discrimination. They practiced a particularly vicious form of shadism against darker-skinned less mixed-race people of African ancestry themselves that deeply wounded and cleaved the black community in two in Louisiana. If you were darker skinned you were more likely to be treated with more respect by a white person, than you were by a Louisiana creole. They attended churches that did not allow blacks that were darker than a paper bag to attend. Their social clubs excluded anyone darker than the pine doors at the entrance. If you could not run a fine-toothed comb through your hair, you could not attend a school where Louisiana creoles went. If you married a person darker than tan, You would most likely be ostracized by the family or the community. They were more accepting of a child born from a relationship with a white man out of wedlock Than a child born of the marriage of a dark-skinned black person and a Creole. The generations of scorn heaped on the non or less mixed-race black community by Mixed race creoles has left the community near permanently under suspicion by The larger black community even to this day. The Creole community can't really heal well because this aspect of their history remains unhealed. As the concept of a buffer race in America disappeared so did the place this community imagined for itself. Not white enough, but intrinsically better than darker-skinned blacks.

Hi, nice show and presenter...what was not included were the Haitian creole and canary island people who came to LA and mixed especially in your family area...My family are hemings/Thomas Jefferson and they did pass

Wonderful interview. Dead on.

this was the next thing i scrolled to and the thing on my mind was my white appearing creole new orleans mother. synch! on both sides of my paternity, everyone comes in different shades and hair textures. we are also Choctaw Cherokee and Chickasaw. we were French speakers on one side and the other couldn't rid it from me sooner. the choices on how to identify has been kind of a racial struggle within the family group. at least the gen i grew up amongst was like that. i'm one of the few who recognizes my indigenous heritage, which i feel was a great loss.

I'm Cajun/Creole Louisiana born and bred. I'm also white, raised as such and have DNA tested to see if I needed to go back through my paper research again. I definately (and obviously) have POC who are cousins but if the dna is accurate, that is not something I need to be looking for myself. But I still identify as creole. My grandfather traces his family back to colonial New Orleans and my grandmother was Acadian/Cajun and didn't leave the bayou til the 1920's or so. It wasn't until I started watching some of Jeremy's conversations on YT that I felt comfortable self identifying as Creole. I still have people look at me weird since I am very obviously white but I now have the historical context because of his information that allows me to push back when I need to.

Monsieur Simien is a fine speaker. With remarkable articulacy and sensitivity, he brought so much about Creole identity. It's uncommon for us men to tap into that psychotherapeutic side of understanding and empathy.

Right on point when it comes to the issue of colorism within Creole Culture. My Maternal Grandma was from N.E. Louisiana born 1897 in Jones, LA My father in law's family escaped Slavery in New Orleans resettled in Canada and eventually moved to S.W. Michigan and Flourished in Business a pillar of his community for years. his granddaughter attended University in Tenn. She was urged to claim here Creole Heritage by individuals she came in contact with while attending school I told her your Grandpa knew his heritage and spoke French but never was consumed by it. 🙏🏾👁️💔👁️🙏🏾

I literally found out recently. I knew my family went far back into Louisiana but not 300 years ago 😂. Our names are very French still and my dad's family comes in all skin tones.They never mentioned being Creole though. I was doing my family tree and found out I have a Spanish Creole ancestors as well as a few French and seeing my distant cousins on Ancestry and 23andMe pop up in Haiti, Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. Even been approached by LA Creoles in Cali asking me if I was a LA Creole before finding out.

Loved this conversation. I wonder if you’re a distant cousin of my son I think you mentioned the name Guillory. From what I’ve researched he has Cajun/Creole ancestors. I also have Louisiana roots. I appreciate you sharing your journey with us ❤

This is an interesting video 🤔 , I enjoyed watching this video.

I really appreciated Jeremy's nuanced and personal discussion about this contested subject--and from a Louisiana context.

Loved the interview! This guy nailed it!

He hit the nail on the head! Everything he speaks about I've seen in my own family and friends that are culturally creole and racially identifying as such. Colorism had a lot to do with it and survival of the time.

My family migrated to Port Arthur/Beaumont area. Colorism was very real for us. I remember when I started to get darker my grandmother didn’t like it.

Wow, what a powerful interview and message! Thank you for sharing this!

Awesome interview!!!!👏🏼

The idea of self identification is fascinating to me. I appreciate your content, you’re very thoughtful and honest throughout this journey.

This was so great. I feel like we need to be connected. I recently found out my grandmother spoke fluent French because her mother was creole and we never knew. Additionally her husband my grandfather migrated from Cuba. I just find these things so fascinating only to find them out after having a growing family of my own. It’s natural for us to want to know even if we didn’t grow up in that culture. But I agree with Jeremy … my grandmother forced herself to learn English so she could fit in more. Great interview.

Thanks for breaking this down, I always believed Creole was anyone of any mixing of "races", all shades. The one crossing the color barrier were Cajun/ white. As a Jamaican, I love the country's original motto...." OUT OF MANY ONE PEOPLE" I always say, what you see is what you get. As per racial profiling I am considered Quadroon, but depending on my hairstyles I can pass for Hispanic, I was even called a "NATO BABY " when living in Europe ( Germany). Sounds very similar to some Jamaicans, in my house being brought up by my Grandmother who was Bi-racial banned anyone that spoke "patios" from the house. I was told only the Queen's English was spoken in her house. (circa..1970-1974) I agree with Jeremy...you are who you are....hold your head up and be proud of who you are, no matter what others think of you.

This was a beautiful discussion. He spoke about truths that still ring loud today. The stretch of one common thread we deal with from the darkest to the fairest. The traumas still strongly exist. It's great that it's being more talked about.

This discussion was fascinating to me. It’s a really hard topic that I can identify with - how do you respect your ancestors and heritage without truly having had the same experience because of being raised as white? And how do people react? It’s tough, and I very much respect your transparency in your journey.

Thank you so much for this video. I’ve had so many questions with my family and why they don’t like talking about something that is a part of our history. This really helped clarify why they chose not to claim being creole.

Yes, I completely relate to what he is saying. I was so confused between what is creole . My Pau Pau used to say, "we's creole. But I thought it just meant they were from New Orleans. What Ive learned is that is was a way that distinugished those who were of African Ancestry that were born in New Orleans vs those who were born in a West African country. It is imposed upon us when our families use it, but dont really have one definition of what it is. Is it African and French ? Is it mixed race ? Is it born in the US vs born on the continent ? It seems everyone has their own definition which makes it more confusing.

Wonderful interview!! ❤

Its still too close. My family that is from New Orleans do not talk about these things. I am opening some wounds when I ask these questions.

I am Creole with my roots in New Iberia, Louisiana. As passed down from my Great-grand father, who is a LaBeaux, our culture consists of African, Spanish, French and Native-American (Muskogee- Cree). Though I do not look white or black, I am always assumed to be Mexican, Latin American, and occasionally Middle Eastern. My father is Caucasian (Swiss), but it is my mother who is Creole. She regularly gets mistaken for being Latin American or East-Indian. My mother's cooking reflects the Spanish and French influence in her cooking. At our church she is considered the Queen of the sweet-potato pies. Though I was born and raised in San Francisco, CA, I am proud of my Creole heritage and am a serious critic of Gumbo. That reaux betta be right!

Creoles know creoles they were tight knit communities Some may have married outside the creole communities this maybe another aspect to consider. But, it’s not old school accurate to say everyone’s creole that’s mixed race She said it the best by saying if your native American and creole say that Black and creole Afro-creole If your Haitian your Haitian Creole If your all French your French creole If your from the Atlantic coast Sierra Leon -Atlantic Creoles To properly say which area your ancestors heritage comes from before the “creole” word is the most accurate way to describe your family line Or Spanish -Creoles “Spanish Creole” When I say old school thought I mean the elders of Creole communities will say this is how it was properly used The land area of the lineages and then say “-“-creoles” It’s a way easier way as well to show your unique line of creoles Hopefully this is helpful to some. Everyone’s got their own unique creole if that makes sense so it’s important to share the unique lineages along with the name creole and it’s respectful to not create a link to a lineage one’s family may not be apart of

Thanks for sharing your stories! I’m still here as a Creole male that’s longing for Creole unity. We are treated differently from both sides. I have long deep scares for being a Creole. Love you family!

There are Haotian creole and Louisiana creole. I'm creole when we were young our family spoke Patua. Then stopped. Also, there are distinct features amongst creoles in skin texture tone and features such as high cheekbones, hair color and texture, and the setting or deepening of the eyes. Madame Marie Laveau was creole.

Such a great conversation. Thank you!

The female here is definitely a lady of color, you can tell and she's beautiful too!!

Keep teaching us. Thank U

"A hurt people" - brilliant and accurate expression/explanation.

Wow everything he said is 100% accurate. It’s always hard for me to explain to non Creoles, who and what we are. I always say, it’s a Creole thing you wouldn’t understand. Jeremy Simien understands. Thank you my Louisiana Creole brother for educating the masses.

My grandfather was born in Carencro, raised in Lafayette and moved to Beaumont. Yes, they moved to cities for jobs and married different people.

Thanks for this message🎯❤Much needed

I've been really facinated by your story & reading the stories of others. What occurred to me while viewing all of this about your great-grandmother and the area where she was born was the Perot family in Dallas. As in, the now deceased former Presidential nominee Ross Perot & his family. It turns out that his family is also from the Natchitoches Parish, although it seems this branch moved to TX around the time of the Emancipation Proclamation.

Mes cousins! I grew up in a creole neighborhood in Los Angeles, California. Nai , 1950’s. Patois French, spicy rice eating people! Ironically, I have relocated, retired to New Orleans. Learning about my people. Someone from here asked me what I am. I replied, creole. .. I could hear her mind shifting. Didn’t know why. Your conversation touched on this local raw nerve that I have never known before. Much grass

Thank you for sharing. I cannot relate, but I do appreciate!

Great compassionate informative historical piece.

It's interesting to hear this from the American(USA) perspective In the Caribbean 'creole' originally referred to the French who were born in the Caribbean. Later it came to refer to blacks who were born in the Caribbean as well. This gave rise (at least in Trinidad and Tobago)to the separation in the terms 'creole' for blacks and "French Creole' for the Bourgeoisie. The "French Creole' label has basically become attached to the people of French and African descent. So much so that even if you are basically white African descent is assumed.

Thanks for posting.

This what I love about Jeremy he speaks the true meaning of our culture

A lot of Black Americans label lighter skin black folks from Louisiana as Creole. Like folks in my family have referred to my great grandfather as creole and I have no proof he's creole. But because he's from LA and has light eyes and skin folks will label him creole.

My grandma first Language was French. And her skin tone is not mix race. My dad always wear long sleeves and pants and a hat.And brags about his light skin.Crazy part is my mom is 3 shades darker than him and has more Creole heritage than him

In the fifties and sixties when I was growing up my mom told us she was 1/4 th creole she was born and raised in Mississippi. My mom was dark. Did a 23 and me it came back 96% Nigerian and 4% iraian

Very interesting conversation. Having been born in Mississippi at the Louisiana state line; I've wished I could trace my family lineage. We have said that our family is of Heinz 57 mix; African American, Native American and Caucasian. Most of us just claim African American because of our complexion and leave it there... It's a shame that we live in a country where we are our ancestors lost track of birth records or there never was anything but spoken history. I tried to help my mom get her mother's birth certificate and was told those records were lost due to a fire in Jackson. Just Sad. I believe my daddy was born in Lafayette, LA; he and some of his family spoke French until they moved to Mississippi and Tennessee.

Thank you both for sharing your journeys.

No matter how much you try to erradicate something, that something always shine through.. The woman researching her family, sees herself as white, but by the features and slight skin tone she appears mixed. Even her hair appears more mixed textured than european! The Creoles tried to pass as white but in some cases, they just put a spotlight onto themselves, as some of us can see someone with black in them. She is a copy of her grandmother!

Interesting video. I’m not Creole but have had people ask me for most of my life whether I am. My ex husband is a very fair skinned, blued eyed Greek and during our marriage no one knew where to put me as a light skinned Eurocentric looking black - our children are all identified as white. Now we have the term “multiracial generations” and that’s where I am since we are mostly Scot/Irish and English rather than French and mixed with sub Saharan African. It’s time that we grapple with the real issues of mixed race and yes, I also have white passing relatives and those who could have passed. I remember as a child traveling through the segregated south that my father would take my older brother - both very light with straight hair, into segregated places to retrieve food for the family. My mother and I - both light but not white, would be parked some distance away with our heads ducked down. You don’t forget such experiences.

I Love to see folks speaking about this.... ( I Tell People My Mom is a White Skin Black Woman) Born in New Iberia,Louisiana

I'm a mixed-race guy from NJ but very familiar with the La. Creole population. There are such a spectrum of mixed people from that area- I just spoke with a 60-yr old white former co-worker from Calif. who called me in surprise to say he JUST found out his maternal family is descended from "free people of color" in Louisiana, found old photos of them, etc. He hadn't known this until now.

That paranoid of the sun thing is real! We were always told to not stay in the sun too long... and I'm not even light-skinned but so many of my family is and especially the generations before me.

My great grandparents were Louisiana Creole.Was super close with my great grandpa. I am very proud of my creole heritage. Want to go to Louisiana so bad.

Jim Crow laws has really damaged people. Mixed people shouldn't have to feel like there's a need to be white even if they pass for white nor should they feel like something has gone wrong because they also can't fully be classified as Black. The reality is like mixing different flavors in a bowl and it starts to taste and look unique from each one of those ingredients. The gentlemen speaking, he's doing a great interview. If I saw here I would think that perhaps he's from a Spanish speaking country, or a Middle Eastern country, even Turkish to me. Comparing lighter skinned people of color to darker causes pain for both, really. Both of you would just look like natives of North Africa or Southern Spain. We need to get pass all of this don't we.

I love and respect what you’re doing; all the research hard work knowing from my perspective it’s not easy; I enjoyed this guess interview he is so on point with his statements; I can relate to all of what you both said, I am from South East Louisiana; my great Grandmother’s Sisters moved to other states, one that moved to Arkansas we believe she was passing, couldn’t prove it but certain facts cause some us to become suspicious; She made two visits to Louisiana one with another Sister that lived in Kentucky, the next time she came alone, she was Married said had no Children, husband never visited with her, that’s usually what happens to keep their Black identity concealed.