one-drop rule |
The one-drop rule is a historical colloquial term for a belief among some people in the United States that a person with any trace of African ancestry is black.
See also: hypodescent.
For more information, see Winthrop D. Jordan’s (Paul Spickard, ed.) “Historical Origins of the One-Drop Racial Rule in the United States,” in the Journal of Critical Mixed Race Studies (Volume 1, Issue 1, 2014).
Tags: hypodescent, one-drop rule