# How many black or white friends do you have? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 7, 2009, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263 "2009-04-07T16:15:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/21 "2009-04-08T05:45:53Z")
Does family count? If so, I have a mixed race niece (black, white, Amerindian, Latino), an Amerindian aunt, two mixed Amerindian / white cousins, a Latino aunt and a Latino / white cousin. As far as friends go, I have several black friends (one of whom lived with me for a couple of months when she moved back to town), a couple of Asian friends and several Latino friends. I work in a large facility with a very multi-culti workforce and I would consider a number of them friends as well. I just try to pick as friends the folks that I get along with well, no matter what the color. ---
**Author:** ![Desert\_Nomad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desert_nomad/32/177_2.png) [@Desert\_Nomad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desert_Nomad)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/22 "2009-04-08T05:54:28Z")
So are Iranians black or white? How about Burmese? Pretty narrow field I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![Jettboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/85e7bf/32.png) [@Jettboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jettboy)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/23 "2009-04-08T11:33:10Z")
Back when I _had_ friends, I had one or two that were black, but a much larger number that were Hispanic. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/24 "2009-04-08T12:21:41Z")
I actually don’t know any blacks who live in Tokyo. I used to have a friend of a friend who would sometimes hang out, but he moved back 16 years ago, and then the husband of one of my wife’s friends, but they moved as well. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/25 "2009-04-09T00:56:23Z")
My friend list from childhood on up would be: White White Native American White Brazilian Black White White Japanese Personally, I am white. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/26 "2009-04-09T03:19:04Z")
White male, 36. At the moment, none. Over my lifetime, probably a couple of dozen. Like others have said, it’s a matter of environment. In elementary and middle school, I had plenty, because my schools were about 25-30% black. In high school I had 2 fairly close black friends, and another 5-10 school friends/close acquaintances. In college, the school I went to was considerably less diverse, so I had maybe 4 or 5 decently close friends. Graduate school was more diverse, although less black than undergrad, but even then, the two black guys (both African- one Cameroonian, one Nigerian) in our MBA cohort were buddies of mine. In the working world, it’s been somewhat less, if only because there just aren’t that many black folks in IT for whatever reason. I’ve worked with some black folks who were in different business units, but never made many close friendships. On the other hand, I’ve had many very close hispanic friends over the years. Same goes for Asians of all stripes, with Vietnamese and Indians being the biggest bunch, and Chinese bringing up third place. Again, a matter of environment- in the parts of town I’ve lived in and the schools / workplaces I’ve been at, hispanics and Indians are much more common than black people. My brother on the other hand, went to school 7 years after I did, and a large percentage of his friends are and were black, simply because the demographics of the neighborhoods changed. Now that he’s working, it’s more similar to my situation, although teaching is more integrated than IT, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/27 "2009-04-09T05:53:24Z")
One black friend, a neighbor whom I see almost every day. I had a black roommate in college, and a biracial roommate after college. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/28 "2009-04-09T07:14:09Z")
Heh, I live in small-town China and I’ve still got four black friends, plus a pile from Cameroon and a few American old friends. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/29 "2009-04-09T14:44:24Z")
I have one Black friend who I’ve been friends with since the 6th grade (I think). I’m not sure if that counts tho’ because his parents were loaded and they always lived in “Whitey Land”. So his cultural tendencies are as about as white as they come. I also have about 3 Black “bar friends”. By that I mean, the local bar I frequent has some Black regulars that I am friendly with… We’ve never hung out on planed social gatherings tho’. Nor do we have each others phone numbers. I’ve dated two Black girls if that counts. (No, not at the same time!) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/30 "2009-04-09T14:58:32Z")
> [@SHAKES](#): > > I’m not sure if that counts tho’ because his parents were loaded and they always lived in “Whitey Land”. So his cultural tendencies are as about as white as they come. So if he didn’t grow up dirt poor in the ghetto he isn’t really black? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/31 "2009-04-09T15:07:19Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > So if he didn’t grow up dirt poor in the ghetto he isn’t really black? :rolleyes: Calm down. I inferred from the OP; _How many friends do you have that don’t share your cultural tendencies?_ Granted I may be off the mark but that was the reason for the explanation of my long time Black friend. ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/32 "2009-04-09T20:04:21Z")
I’m antisocial. So at the moment, we have one couple we do things with socially, and they’re white. I have many friends of different ethnicities online. I have co-workers I enjoy speaking with of different ethnicities–right now, primarily black and white, and a couple hispanic. And I’m white. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/33 "2009-04-09T20:48:44Z")
I’m Indian (from India) and have no black friends currently. I did in college, but honestly I don’t maintain that many friendships and even my casual acquaintances are all [other]. All of the clubs I’m part of don’t have any black people. Hell, most of them don’t have any Asian people - I generally am around white people almost all of the time. ---
**Author:** ![Creaky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@Creaky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creaky)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/34 "2009-04-09T21:39:31Z")
I am white, and I have no black friends. Actually, I am so crabby I am lucky that I have any friends. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/35 "2009-04-09T22:34:21Z")
> [@SHAKES](#): > > Calm down. I inferred from the OP; _How many friends do you have that don’t share your cultural tendencies?_ > > Granted I may be off the mark but that was the reason for the explanation of my long time Black friend. Carry on, then, and sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/36 "2009-04-10T01:06:43Z")
> [@Creaky](#): > > I am white, and I have no black friends. > > Actually, I am so crabby I am lucky that I have any friends. But I still loves ya! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Creaky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@Creaky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creaky)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/37 "2009-04-10T07:08:27Z")
> [@Khadaji](#): > > But I still loves ya! 🙂 As Lionel Hardcastle’s dad would say, “Rock on!” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/38 "2009-04-10T11:18:57Z")
> [@Creaky](#): > > As Lionel Hardcastle’s dad would say, “Rock on!” 😃 Hmmmm. _As Time Goes By_, that quote will just keep getting better… ---
**Author:** ![FlyingRamenMonster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@FlyingRamenMonster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingRamenMonster)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/39 "2009-04-10T12:10:27Z")
I’m Asian. I guess I don’t exist and have no friends. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263/40 "2009-04-10T13:50:20Z")
Well, when I lived in a more diverse place (Worcester MA), I had friends of every race and religion you could imagine. Now that I live in Redneck Central, my friends are white. I’m friendly with the Indian guy who owns the convenience store. My good friend from work has a son who has a half white, half black friend and I’m quite friendly with the kid too. So, I guess that means I have half a black friend? I’ve heard a rumor that there’s a non-white person at the company I work for but as of Thursday morning, I’ve never seen him so I can’t verify. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-black-or-white-friends-do-you-have/492263.md?page=3)