History Main / OneDropRule

* In many countries, like South Africa, Indonesia, Jamaica, Brazil and others, the trope is the opposite. There are distinct mixed-race populations (in some cases many varieties), with people deemed to be just one race in the US not considered so there.

* ''Film/FreeStateOfJones'': Rachel is mixed race. It becomes an issue at Davis Knight's trial as to whether his great-great grandmother was Rachel or Serena Knight. Assuming the former, he would be "colored" under Mississippi state law and thus forbidden to marry a white woman. If the latter, he would be white and thus freed. The prosecutor {{lampshades}} how unusual this is, as generally it would be [[MamasBabyPapasMaybe the father whose identity isn't clear]]. Eventually the Knight family Bible is uncovered, revealing that it was Rachel.

* Discussed in ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird''. At one point, Jem points out a mixed race child (the son of Dolphus Raymond and his "coloured woman") to Scout and Dill, who think the child looks black and ask Jem how he can tell the difference. Jem says you can't always tell if someone is mixed race unless you know who their parents are, prompting Scout to ask her brother how he knows they "ain't Negroes". Jem replies that there is no trace of African blood in the Finch family as far as Uncle Jack knows, but they might have come out of Ethiopia in Old Testament times. Scout thinks this means it was "too long ago to matter", but Jem says that, in the eyes of their segregation era Deep South community, having even a single drop of African blood "makes you all black."

** Louis mentions that his family is mixed race, and in former times were somewhat more privileged as free people of color. With Jim Crow, however, racist state laws apply no matter what, even when only one of his grandparents was entirely black. Louis just calls himself "Negro," the term used then, and the laws would have classified him as such.
** However, it's worth noting that in the presence of his French boyfriend, [[https://mymycorrhizae.tumblr.com/post/697029452584075264/iwtv-s01e02 Louis identifies himself as "Creole" in the second episode.]] He makes a point about how he and Lestat are labelled in America ("Colored. White.") and France ("Creole. French.") based on their race. While America's one-drop rule means that Louis' French ancestry is completely ignored, in France, he is more likely to be recognized as biracial, and thus he would be called ''Créole'' rather than ''Nègre''. Lestat certainly views Louis as Creole because the [[MixedAncestryIsAttractive latter's mixed heritage is a turn-on for him]].
* Mixed race Bette and fully black Yolanda on ''Series/TheLWord'' discuss racial politics, and at one point Yolanda [[InvokedTrope brings this up]] to tell Bette why Bette is still considered 'black'. Bette retaliates by [[ArmorPiercingQuestion asking]] [[DefiedTrope if she's going to let White America define her identity.]] Bette notes that she could pass, but never does, consciously embracing having black heritage and always calling herself biracial rather than to deny either of her parents implicitly.

* Jazmine [=DuBois=] from ''ComicStrip/TheBoondocks'', who's the daughter of a white mom and a black dad. She feels very confused and insecure about her biracial heritage, and so she's really annoyed by Huey Freeman immediately labeling her as only being "black". Later when her teacher and principal learn that she's mixed race and they inquire further about it, they eventually come to the same conclusion as Huey.

* Virginia's "Racial Integrity Act of 1924" split Virginians into "white" and "colored". And then the lawmakers realized they had a problem on their hands -- many of the Virginia elite claimed descent from Pocahontas, and as written this law would have redefined them as "colored". In the "Pocahontas Exception", a person who was 1/16th American Indian was legally considered white. (The same fraction of any other ethnicity classed you as colored.)
* Under Nazi Germany's notoriously anti-Semitic [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_Laws Nuremberg Laws,]] a person with one Jewish grandparent was ''Mischling'' Second Degree, with limited legal rights. The [=SS=] was even stricter -- if you wanted to join, you had to prove that all your direct ancestors going back to 1750 were non-Jewish. Depending on how long one considers one generation to be, this could involve proving Aryan ancestry back 8 or 9 generations. However, given that the records used contained religion and not ethnicity, one could even have had completely Jewish ancestry and be classified as full "Aryan", if all your (distant) ancestors were converts. Of course, it's moot since their racial theory was nonsense-European Jews have a lot of shared DNA with other groups there since (by intermarriage or affairs) mixing occurred historically anyway very often.
* Northern abolitionists took advantage of this trope in the [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar antebellum]] period. They would stage mock "[[SexSlave fancy girl]] slave auctions", and gradually put lighter-skinned women on the "auction block" until finally they were showing off women who were outwardly pure Caucasian but had the necessary one drop of black ancestry to be classed as black in the slave-holding South.

** A school teacher showed photos of Obama to her class and asked them to point which features looked "African". Several of the chosen ones were actually shared with [[https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c0/77/eb/c077eb89d0187717f0f096b104d7b53b.jpg his white grandfather.]] In Kenya, where Obama's father was from, he would be considered [[https://www.wikitree.com/photo.php/b/b0/Obama-25.jpg white.]]

* In many countries, like South Africa, Indonesia, Jamaica, Brazil and others, the trope is the opposite. There are distinct mixed race populations (in some cases many varieties), with people deemed to be just one race in the US not considered so there.

-->-- '''Creator/TrevorNoah''', ''Literature/BornACrime''

* [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] in one episode of ''Series/AllInTheFamily''. Archie is recruited into a new social club that turned out to be a front for the UsefulNotes/KuKluxKlan, and once he learns this he wants out. He eventually tells them he has "black blood"[[note]]from a transfusion during the previous season, but everyone involved treats it as a permanent alteration of Archie's racial makeup so it manages to squeeze in here[[/note]].

* Under Nazi Germany's notoriously anti-Semitic [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_Laws Nuremberg Laws]], a person with one Jewish grandparent was ''Mischling'' Second Degree, with limited legal rights. The [=SS=] was even stricter -- if you wanted to join, you had to prove that all your direct ancestors going back to 1750 were non-Jewish. Depending on how long one considers one generation to be, this could involve proving Aryan ancestry back 8 or 9 generations. However, given that the records used contained religion and not ethnicity, one could even have had completely Jewish ancestry and be classified as full "Aryan", if all your (distant) ancestors were converts. Of course, it's moot since their racial theory was nonsense-European Jews have a lot of shared DNA with other groups there since (by intermarriage or affairs) mixing occurred historically anyway very often.

* [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maynard_Jackson Maynard Jackson]] was unironically seen as Atlanta's first black mayor when elected in 1973. In Europe he'd probably would have been considered as a [[https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images/mayor-maynard-jackson-1973-1566224567.jpg?crop=0.678xw:0.455xh;0.322xw,0.124xh&resize=480:* swarthy white guy]].

** A school teacher showed photos of Obama to her class and asked them to point which features looked "African". Several of the chosen ones were actually shared with [[https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c0/77/eb/c077eb89d0187717f0f096b104d7b53b.jpg his white grandfather]]. In Kenya, where Obama's father was from, he would be considered [[https://www.wikitree.com/photo.php/b/b0/Obama-25.jpg white]].

Historically, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-drop_rule One Drop Rule]] assigned these people to the lower-status group. Someone in the American South who looked Caucasian but had a distant Negro ancestor would be classed as "black". On this wiki, the One Drop Rule expands to cover interracial and interspecies as well as inter-ethnic lines of descent.

There are two features that must be present for a character to fall under the One Drop Rule:

For example, [[Franchise/StarTrek Spock]] gets [[HalfBreedDiscrimination a lot of grief]] from Vulcans due to his 50% human family tree. But he's a HalfHumanHybrid, and would stay on that page instead of moving here. If Spock were to marry another Vulcan, his children and grandchildren [[note]] assuming the Vulcans don't get their heads out of their collective butts[[/note]] ''would'' fall prey to the One Drop Rule.

Compare to HalfBreedDiscrimination (when there's more than just one drop) and UnevenHybrid (when the one drop doesn't result in any discrimination) . Contrast to ButNotTooBlack. Revealing that a character falls under the One Drop Rule can result in a PassFail.

** Louis mentions that his family is mixed race, and in former times were somewhat more privileged as free people of color. With Jim Crow, however, racist state laws apply no matter what, even when only one of his grandparents was entirely black. Louis just calls himself "Negro", the term used then, which the laws would have classify him too.

* ''Series/InterviewWithTheVampire2022'': Louis mentions that his family is mixed race, and in former times were somewhat more privileged as free people of color. With Jim Crow, however, racist state laws apply no matter what, even when only one of his grandparents was entirely black. Louis just calls himself "Negro", the term used then, which the laws would have classify him too.

* ''Series/InterviewWithTheVampire2022'': Louis mentions that his family is mixed race, and in former times were somewhat more privileged as free people of color. With Jim Crow, however, racist state laws apply no matter what, even when only one of his grandparents was entirely black.

[[folder:Live-Action Television]]

* PlayedForLaughs in an early episode of ''Series/MadTV'' with a man claiming to be an Octoroon, an antiquated term meaning someone who is 1/8th black, meaning his whole family tree is white except for one great-grandparent. Despite looking completely white, he still insists on acting like an oppressed black man.

* Under Nazi Germany's notoriously anti-Semitic [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_Laws Nuremberg Laws]], a person with one Jewish grandparent was ''Mischling'' Second Degree, with limited legal rights. The [=SS=] was even stricter -- if you wanted to join, you had to prove that all your direct ancestors going back to 1750 were non-Jewish. Depending on how long one considers one generation to be, this could involve proving Aryan ancestry back 8 or 9 generations. (But, given that the records used contained religion and not ethnicity, one could even have had completly Jewish ancestry and be classified as full "Aryan", if all your (distant) ancestors were converts).

* Elizabeth Warren had heard from older family members that they had Native American ancestry, and at times she identified as such in her professional and political life. When opponents claimed that she made this up to advance her career, she took a DNA test that showed Native American ancestry "in the range of 6 to 10 generations ago." To supporters, this proved that she was telling the truth, while detractors argued that being, at most, 1/64th Native doesn't really qualify one to claim that as your race. Since then, Warren has conceded that she doesn't have the cultural links to really identify as Native American.

* Mixed-race Bette and fully black Yolanda on ''Series/TheLWord'' discuss racial politics, and at one point Yolanda [[InvokedTrope brings this up]] to tell Bette why Bette is still considered 'black'. Bette retaliates by [[ArmorPiercingQuestion asking]] [[DefiedTrope if she's going to let White America define her identity.]]

* Jazmine [=DuBois=] from ''ComicStrip/TheBoondocks'', who's the daughter of a white mom and a black dad. She feels very confused and insecure about her biracial heritage, and so she's really annoyed by Huey Freeman immediately labeling her as only being "black". Later when her teacher and principal learn that she's mixed-race and they inquire further about it, they eventually come to the same conclusion as Huey.

** AD&D's second edition went there with half-elves right in the ''Player's Handbook'', where the children of a half-elf could only ever be a half-elf themselves or else essentially human with some cosmetic elvish features depending on the other parent, but never an actual 'proper' elf. This isn't even presented as prejudice (which could vary by setting), but just as biological ''fact''.
** In 4[[superscript:th]] edition, the ancient, decadent [[TheEmpire Empire]] of Bael Turath made a collective DealWithTheDevil that transformed them into the first generation of tieflings. While tieflings can interbreed normally with humans, the children are always tieflings, no matter how small a fraction of Turathi blood is in their ancestry; and those children get to experience the full gamut of distrust and prejudice that their "devil-tainted" pedigree attracts.
** In a more positive example - the sorcerer class. It requires one to have some sort of magical ancestry, but not necessarily to a degree of being a distinct "race" such as dragonblooded or aforementioned tieflings. One drop is enough to be able to get magical powers.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* Discussed in ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird''. At one point, Jem points out a mixed race child (the son of Dolphus Raymond and his "coloured woman") to Scout and Dill, who think the child looks black and ask Jem how he can tell the difference. Jem says you can't always tell if someone is mixed race unless you know who their parents are, prompting Scout to ask her brother how he knows they "ain't Negroes". Jem replies that there is no trace of African blood in the Finch family as far as their Uncle Jack knows, but they might have come out of Ethiopia in Old Testament times. Scout thinks this means it was "too long ago to matter", but Jem says that, as far as their neighbours are concerned, having even a single drop of African blood "makes you all black."

* Creator/MeghanMarkle had an infamous controversy about her ancestry after marrying into UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor, despite that she could easily pass for white almost anywhere. In Europe, at most, she would be considered mediterranean.

* ''Series/MixedIsh'': This trope is {{discussed}} by Bo with her voiceover, noting that in the US anyway with (visible, at least) black ancestry gets classified as black. She's not comfortable with that, however, preferring to embrace both sides of her heritage and call herself mixed, while her siblings "pick a side" based on their looks.

** This would have consequences for John Ambrose Fauntroy V decades later as a consequence of the 'One Drop Scandal' in which his slave Horace accused him of having black ancestry, telling of how Fauntroy's great-grandfather had sexual relations with Horace's great-grandmother, then took the light skinned children away and 'made them white' while the dark skinned ones were left to be slaves. The resulting accusations and scandal cost Fauntroy the presidency, and he shot himself not long after the election. [[spoiler:DNA testing done after his death proved 'negative' but the {{Mockumentary}} doesn't clarify what 'negative' means in this context.]]

Historically, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-drop_rule One Drop Rule]] assigned these people to the lower-status group. Someone in the American South who looked Caucasian but had a distant Negro ancestor would be classed as "black". On this wiki, the One Drop Rule expands to cover interracial as well as inter-ethnic lines of descent.

* Under Nazi Germany's [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_Laws Nuremberg Laws]], a person with one Jewish grandparent was ''Mischling'' Second Degree, with limited legal rights. The [=SS=] was even stricter -- if you wanted to join, you had to prove that all your direct ancestors going back to 1750 were non-Jewish. Depending on how long one considers one generation to be, this could involve proving Aryan ancestry back 8 or 9 generations. (But, given that the records used contained religion and not ethnicity, one could even have had completly Jewish ancestry and be classified as full "Aryan", if all your (distant) ancestors were converts).