# Is Shaun King (Daily Kos writer & Black Lives Matter activist) really white? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 19, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271 "2015-08-19T16:39:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 20
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/381 "2015-08-22T14:50:56Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Cite? Enough. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/382 "2015-08-22T14:56:00Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > Ms. Pate has a birth certificate, arrest records, school records, and photos. > > Shaun has nothing. Shaun has everything he needs- he self-identifies as “black”. Ms pate is nothing but a muck-raking racist. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/383 "2015-08-22T14:58:12Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > For the millionth time, Shaun King’s blog (or anybody else’s) IS NOT A CITE. It doesn’t prove anything. Don’t they teach the difference between opinion and fact anymore? Sure, it proves he self-identifies as “black”, which the only right defintion. What’s \*your \*definition of “black”? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/384 "2015-08-22T15:08:11Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Shaun has everything he needs- he self-identifies as “black”. > > Ms pate is nothing but a muck-raking racist. Criticizing black people, even (especially?) self-identified ones, does not make one racist. Both of his legal parents–the ones on his birth certificate–are white, btw. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/385 "2015-08-22T15:15:24Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > Criticizing black people, even (especially?) self-identified ones, does not make one racist. Both of his legal parents–the ones on his birth certificate–are white, btw. No- they “self-identified” as white, and i havent seen this birth certificate, have you? Again, **What’s your definition of “black”?** You seem to think that a child of two parents who “self-identified” as white can’t be “black”. What if they both had one black parent, but wanted to be called “white”? Again, **What’s your definition of “black”?** ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/386 "2015-08-22T15:21:47Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > Enough. The word “enough” is not a cite to back up your assertions. Can you provide a credible cite that shows that your assertions regarding the purported identity of the blogger known as “Vicki Pate” does indeed have the paperwork and documentation that you claim exists? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/387 "2015-08-22T15:26:37Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > No- they “self-identified” as white, and i havent seen this birth certificate, have you? No, Shaun identified his mother as white. Photographic evidence identifies the father listed on the birth certificate as white. The birth certificate was linked in the very first post. > [@](#): > > What if they both had one black parent, but wanted to be called “white”? There is no evidence that any of his grandparents were black. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/388 "2015-08-22T15:27:50Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > The word “enough” is not a cite to back up your assertions. Can you provide a credible cite that shows that your assertions regarding the purported identity of the blogger known as “Vicki Pate” does indeed have the paperwork and documentation that you claim exists? The documents were linked to. Are you saying that Ms. Pate somehow doctored them? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/389 "2015-08-22T15:30:06Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > There is no evidence that any of his grandparents were black. There’s evidence that his father was black – he has said that his mother told him that he was. That’s evidence, if not proof. He could be lying, but he could also be telling the truth about what his mother told him (whether or not his mother was being accurate). ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/390 "2015-08-22T15:33:46Z")
Golly, I sure am glad that every parent on every birth certificate is the child’s biological parent. I mean, there’s no way it could ever possibly be otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/391 "2015-08-22T15:40:50Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > There’s evidence that his father was black – he has said that his mother told him that he was. That’s evidence, if not proof. His mother likely told him about Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, too. What she told him is neither evidence nor proof. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/392 "2015-08-22T15:42:13Z")
> [@andros](#): > > Golly, I sure am glad that every parent on every birth certificate is the child’s biological parent. I mean, there’s no way it could ever possibly be otherwise. Are you suggesting that his mother lied on the birth certificate? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/393 "2015-08-22T15:45:52Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > The documents were linked to. Are you saying that Ms. Pate somehow doctored them? I’m sorry, but I went thru the entire thread and must have somehow missed that post. I clicked on all the links I found in your posts, but I didn’t see anything like what you describe. Could you please link to your previous post or to the documents again? ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/394 "2015-08-22T15:46:35Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > Are you suggesting that his mother lied on the birth certificate? No. Are you under the impression that birth certificates must list biological parents? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/395 "2015-08-22T15:48:07Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > I’m sorry, but I went thru the entire thread and must have somehow missed that post. I clicked on all the links I found in your posts, but I didn’t see anything like what you describe. Could you please link to your previous post or to the documents again? No, I am not doing your homework for you. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/396 "2015-08-22T15:49:19Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > I’m sorry, but I went thru the entire thread and must have somehow missed that post. I clicked on all the links I found in your posts, but I didn’t see anything like what you describe. Could you please link to your previous post or to the documents again? The birth certificate, at least, is in the Breitbart link, a little way down. No idea if it’s genuine, but no reason it wouldn’t be. As much as I hate to give them any traffic, [here’s the image](http://media.breitbart.com/media/2015/08/jeffery-shaun-king.png). . ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/397 "2015-08-22T15:52:48Z")
> [@andros](#): > > Are you under the impression that birth certificates must list biological parents? That’s rather the point, don’t you think? To document births, and the circumstances thereof, including parentage. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be on the every birth certificate I’ve ever seen. Heck, even the most famous birth certificate in the world lists both of the President’s biological parents! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/398 "2015-08-22T16:00:43Z")
A birth certificate goes by the honor system. If the mother declares someone as the father and he agrees, that’s who appears on the birth certificate. The state does not perform birth certificate audits to catch people in tragic lies. Are you seriously not understanding this point, or are you being obtuse on purpose? ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/399 "2015-08-22T16:04:39Z")
Legal parenthood and biological parenthood are two different things. Provided he agrees, any man can be listed as the father on a birth certificate. Or none at all. ETA: Got distracted by a kawaii cat gif, and **monstro** got there. But I’d emphasize that King’s mom cannot have lied on the birth certificate, and there’s no reason to think she lied to her husband. . ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271/400 "2015-08-22T16:09:38Z")
Some (all?) states even issue new birth certificates for children when they’re adopted to reflect their new legal parents. There have also been recent cases in the news about same sex couples being given the right to both be listed on their child’s birth certificate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271.md?page=19) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shaun-king-daily-kos-writer-black-lives-matter-activist-really-white/728271.md?page=21)