▶What would Pushkin's life have been like if he had lived in 1800s America? 👕 NYTN Merch: www.nytonashville.com ☕Send me a coffee!: ko-fi.com/nytn13#linkModal ▶ Connect on Patreon: www.patreon.com/NYTN
Well, there is a region in Russia where blacks have always lived. In Spanish, the writer who writes for another is also called black, like those that Shakespeare used, I think in English they are also called black.
I really like your videos, but you are comparing incomparable things. You can't, as you have, compare the plight of the Black population in the South to a Russian, mixed, race prodigy with some African heritage in his lineage. If you want to make that comparison, you have to find a Black equivalent, a mulatto who during the same period achieved similarly to Pushkin because he had opportunities similar to his White peers among the White scions of the antebellum South. Are there none? I wonder. I've read fictional stories of such people, one by Charles W. Chesnutt. does Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806) qualify? Or Jean-Baptiste Point du Sable (1745-1818), the founder of Chicago? QED
@@nytnPushkin's descendants would marry into noble and prominent families all over Europe. One of them the countess Sophie of merenberg was the niece of the grand Duke Luxembourg. And married into the Romanov dynasty. I wonder if his descendants see themselves as anything other than wealthy Aristocratic white people
Interesting. I was educated in Russia and no, we weren't really taught that. The fact that his grandfather was Black African is well-known and mentioned in school, but race does not have the same place in Russian history as it does in the US. What social group you were born into mattered more. Serf peasants and their owners didn't differ in race but family origin. The racial identity of Pushkin is just simply not treated as something that important in Russian context to discuss. He was born into the culture, the language and the faith and was part of Russian aristocracy, so he was a Russian writer. Another thing is Russian understanding of race is not so much blood percentages but the way you look.
@@Casualphilosopher-db9gy So you wrote all that long paragraph just to say he’s a Black man. 🙄 Every time a Black person does something monumental y’all go out of your way to deny their Blackness. How insecure. Even Pushkin acknowledged he was Black.
Pushkin, Alexander Dumas (Three Musketeers creator) and Chevalier all have these deep African linages. I even saw a monument for Pushkin when I was in Addis Ababa Ethiopia.The Russian government placed this monument in Ethiopia but I haven’t seen anything like it anywhere else.
Don't forget Thomas-Alexandre Dumas (1762-1806) was a French general during the Revolutionary Wars who was Alexander Dumas father. Yanga Gasper and Vicente Guerrero are both in Mexico. I am so glad more and more coming out!
There is a Puskin statue at George Washington University in DC. It is from the year 2000 as a guift from the city of Moscow and there apparently is a Walt Whitman Statue reciprically installed in Moscow. It prominantly mentions his African heritage and pride about it. WOrth looking into the orifins if the Etheopian statue. I would guess there are more statues eleswhere. Thanks or the info.
Dumas,Pushkin and Chevalier St George weren't Black they were biracial men... Biracial doesn't make you black just ask a Biracial person and they will tell you that..
Pushkin's "a single leaf which has outlasted it's season will be trembling still ." That poem has carried me through tough times. Thank you young lady. Pushkin is great example of man who is his own creation.
@@silverkitty2503 His paternal grandfather's line was Russian. His paternal grandmother's line was German/Polish/Jewish/Ethiopian. His great-great-grandmother was Ethiopian. Apart from Italian occupation in the 1930s, no European country ever colonized Ethiopia.
How many other poets, artists, scientists, etc, were lost to the institution of involuntary servitude. How many weren't as lucky as Pushkin? Countless...
How many are we still losing today to racism. A study by Citigroup estimated that racism over the last 20 years has cost the US economy 16 trillion dollars. Not insignificant in a country with a 21 trillion annual GDP. The loss to national productivity is ongoing
It’s a little uncomfortable being asked to imagine a world without Pushkin when 13 million people never had a hope in exploring their potential and talents. The levels of wild in that statement and the irony creates a fine balance between the absurdity of a race thinking they are better than another and being outraged by the indignation of someone being treated badly because they are in part from that ‘lowly’ race. It’s a tricky one but not really, because he claimed his African heritage and significantly shaped literature as a Russian. It may seem preposterous that a ‘white’ man is considered black but it’s a racist system that made it all about colour as opposed to people being able to feel good about their heritage. I must subscribe…!
And Pushkin was a man. Alice Walker wrote a great essay about a woman must feel knowing that her work would not be recognized because she's a woman. Whenever we read a poem or see an object that reads "Anonymous," it might have been done by your ancestor.
What are you going on about? Involuntary servitude? You mean slavery, so say it. Pushkin wasn't a slave. Poets, artists, scientists etc, come off it sport. Those slaves ended up slaves in Africa by Black Africans and sold, and they weren't poets, artists in the European sense or scientists. You shouldn't exaggerate. Do you think Mr Tyson would have ended up as an astrophysicist had his Black African ancestors stayed in Africa?
I enjoyed this discussion thoroughly and I've heard of him, but I have never read him. I will be buying his book ASAP. I'm so proud of what he accomplished, and his life is a testimony. If our ancestors had been treated equally here, (In this nation), how far we could have come, not just as a people, but as a nation. Thank you.
Many Americans have no knowledge of Pushkin. I think it helps those people to understand his importance in Russian culture to use this comparison: Pushkin is to Russians as Shakespeare is to English speaking nations.
Alexander Pusking was a "rock star" in Russia. He wrote a series that was published in the local papers. People lined up to get their hands on the publication to be the first to know what happened next in his series. Truly rock star status.
@Casualphilosopher-db9gy probably! that we can't say for sure, it's speculation. But what's sure is whatever your origins or skin color, class was the primary distinction in old day Europe while race was secondary, while the reverse has mainly been true for the US's whole existence.
This is precisely the take away! Statistical analysis based on race vs class provides false conclusions ppl are yearning to accept because of social conditioning... False because purely correlation not causation. The cause is class not race.
I always wondered if he and Alexandre Dumas, author of the Three Musketeers and Count of Monte Cristo and Man in the Iron Mask, who was also Black ever met considering they were contemporaries.
@ Yes. That part I knew from books like the Black Jacobeans (required reading in my parents’ house 😂). Same as true for the Dumas’ father (who was the one who really won Napoleon’s battles for him), there was a large group of Black European nobility/aristocrats.
About the choice of the name Gannibal At that time Educated Europeans still believed that the General Hannibal was a black African. So you often found black servants in noble households with names like Hannibal, Balthazar or some other name Europeans associated with illustrious Africans.
Thank you for another informative video. I had heard of Pushkin’s name, but knew nothing of his background or history. You make a great point about how his life would have been completely different had he come to the USA at the same time in history. It’s very sad to think about all of the lost potential that so many people of African origin experienced because they were brought to the USA as slaves, and birthed many generations under the same circumstances. The same holds true for the indigenous people of the Americas, who had thriving civilizations and cultures on the continents of the Americas, until their lives were tragically altered by the arrival of European explorers.
I sent this program to a friend in Santa Fe who has (or had) a place called Pushkin Gallery. Kenneth Pushkin - a descendant of THE Pushkin. Hopefully he'll get my email and see this program and be in touch with you about it.
Interesting video Danielle, I really enjoyed it. I know there was a group of African Americans who went to Moscow to escape racism. That's all I know about it though, not sure what time period or the circumstances. I would like to know more about that if that's something you would like to explore.
@@axjohnI'm not trying to be funny, but can you enlighten me as to the difference? I'm black. I'm also Creole. But for all intents and purposes when people see me I'm just black. Does it have to do with emphasizing the humanity over the label (slave)?
Alexander Dumas Father was a White French Nobleman descendant of the Normans of France basically nobility Dumas mother was a Black Female slave hence his African maternal ancestry
Alexandre Dumas' father was Thomas-Alexandre Dumas. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas was born in St. Domingue, now known as Haiti. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas' mother was a black Haitian slave named Marie-Cessette Dumas and his father was a white Frenchman named Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas lived in St. Domingue/Haiti for a bit, then his father moved him to France. Thomas Dumas went to French schools, and then joined the French Army. Thomas Dumas was a successful soldier and became a general. Dumas then married a white French woman. Thomas Dumas a soldier in Napoleon Bonaparte's military. Later on Dumas was disrespected and demoted by Bonaparte. When Dumas retired, Bonaparte wouldn't pay Dumas his pension. Dumas died when his son Alexandre Dumas was only 3 yrs old. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas' military service helped inspire his son Alexandre Dumas to write stories and plays about soldiers and adventures such as the Three Musketeers. Alexandre Dumas did get to see Napoleon Bonaparte once. Bonaparte's carriage was passing through town one day and Dumas looked through the window. Described Bonaparte as looking tired and defeated. Alexandre Dumas, I don't recall him ever identifying his race. But made several comments defending his black ancestry from a man who insulted him. I read a couple times that Dumas' works were popular in the United States and was invited to visit. But he supposedly heard about the One Drop Rule at the time and was afraid to visit.
Thank you. 🖖🏻 This is such a mind boggling, amazing story & thinking about the arc of his life in Russia vs what it would have been in America is just 💔.
Really happy to hear others speak of Pushkins contribution. As a parent and Afro cultural animator over the last 30 years lI have introduced him as a a writer of African Russian heritage. I live in Montreal Canada and bring him among many other notable ancestors to the classrooms of children 5 to 12 years of age. No pushback or controversy from teachers or principles. Through Afro heritage month. Kwanzaa and just exploring black prèsebce throughout history my aim is always to let youth and adults know that we have always been present and making meaningful contributions through out the world history. 2 other people that I introduce are Queen Sophie Charlotte and Ludwig von Beethoven. Eyebrows get raised from staff sometime lol. I lol. So many amazing Africans to discover. I love what you are doing with your Chanel! Don’t give up! ❤️🖤💚🙌🏾
It’s interesting & peculiar how the entire world only cares about the great grandfather & the great grandson when it comes to the Pushkin. These two are the most famous but Pushkin’s grand oncle & his grand father who were still very visibly Afro-Russian, were extremely successful as well: His father Ossip served as a judge at the court in Pskow (Pleskau) & was a councillor of the court of Sankt Petersburg - despite being a bigamist which different from his colour was considered a crime. His grand uncle, Iwan Petrovich Hannibal, was a first lieutenant & especially victorious during the Russian-Turkish war. Alexander Pushkin’s mother (daughter of Ossip) though technically only a quarter-Black was referred to as the “the beautiful Creole”, “the beautiful African” or simply as “the Mooress” despite being really pale Black (at least by judging by her portraits). Btw for Swedish & German readers : Pushkin’s great grandmother was the Swedish-German, Christina Siöberg. The entire & very impressive pedigree of Aleksandr Pushkin is online. Sadly, due to the circumstances, the names of his paternal Ethiopian great great parents are not included.
I know of Pushkin but I had no idea about his African heritage till I saw your video. Thank you so much for all that you do.❤ Watching you from Nigeria 🇳🇬
Biracial is incorrect too. Biracial means is one parent black, one white. Bi means half. He would be more like Prince Harry's children, mixed, more European ancestry than African. Only in the good ole USA still hanging on to Jim Crow rules would you call him Black.
Your next successful mixed race writer should be Alexandre Dumas, the grandson of a Frenchman, the Marquis de la Pailleterie and an enslaved woman of African descent Marie-Cessette Dumas, through his father General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas who himself was born a slave on the island colony of Santa Domingo.
Oh, wow, as a Russian, I didn't really expect to see a video about him here. I feel like he's not nearly as well known outside of Russia as other Russian writers. Even though he is THE Russian writer/poet. I can be wrong, I'm not the best at history, but at that time in Russia who you are in a society was dictated first of all by your "class" origin (noble or not, free or someone's peasant, wealthy or not) and not necessarily ethnicity or race. And to belong to the culture it was important to speak the language and be of the same faith (Russian orthodox). So, a European of Catholic faith could be viewed more as an outsider than a person who has a different ethnical origin but was born into the culture, the language and faith. Since Pushkin's grandfather was educated and treated like a noble man basically, Pushkin inherited the noble status. Another thing is that he was just rare, there were simply not enough people with African ancestry to establish some sort of "rule" regarding the status of those people.
Interesting. I wasn't aware of this and I have been involved with the Russian Community in education as a language teacher. Thanks for sharing this "the father of Russian literature" well many, many people worldwide can also trace some African ancestry if they were to try or do DNA testing. But I must say that the United States from my observations with populations around the world, the U.S. has taken race to a whole different level and in a way that makes other societies uncomfortable too.
Danielle, Pushkin was a "unique case" of a Russian nobleman of color. He was a product of his time, having inherited from his father 1200 serfs. Although he did not intend to librate his serfs, he produced lovely poems on liberty. Serfs were people of the same race as their owners. The serfs were treated very cruelly. They were lynched, exchanged for hunting dogs, children were taken away from their parents and sold to other landowners. Isn't that slavery? Famous writers and poets of that era wrote about it. “In Russia the term serf (bonded peasant') meant an unfree peasant who, unlike a slave, historically could be sold only together with the land to which they were "attached". However, this stopped being a requirement by the 19th century, and serfs were practically indistinguishable from slaves.” (Wikipedia)
Emancipation in Russia took place in 1861 and was not for reasons of ideology, but because the Empress believed it would be better for the finances of the empire. For a comparison of the treatment of serfs in Russia and slaves in America during that era, Unfree Labor by Peter Kolchin is authoritative.
@Percept2024 imho, constructive criticism is good… no matter the person. The point is, had Pushkin been born in the USA his talents most likely would not have been allowed to manifest.
I understand your point. The same thing happens within the White race , where people of one nationality or another will be bragging that some famous person was a member of their tribe , and I think to myself " I wouldn`t be bragging about that character ! )
Here is another great author who has a similar story - who everyone has heard or read his books - Alexandre Dumas- 3 Musketeers and the Count of Monte Christo - France
I. Am happy that Pushkin is being mentioned but I would like to correct you he was from Eritrea not Cameroon I know this because he is my family by blood on my grandmothers side
They didn't, most Russians were enslaved to the owner of the land they were born on at that time. Slavery was a condition of birth to them . General Gannibal had not been born a slave and has never lived as a slave in Russia.
I wouldn't go too far about romanticizing Russia's racial or class inclusiveness at that time; my Jewish ancestors had to get the hell out of there due to oppression, persecution and murders. (pogroms).
Had he or his grandfather's experience been set in usa, it is likely that his situation would have been similar to that of Prince Abdul Rahman. He lived 40 years a slave was married in 1794, had 9 children, spoke 5 languages, was educated in Timnuktu and Djeenne. He and his wife was finally repatriated to Monrovia, Liberia, through the efforts of the American Colonalzation Society, Secretary of State Henry Clay, combined with Andrew Marschalk newspaper editort, Dr. Cox, and Rev. Galludette. His chidren remained enslaved. He died several months after his repatriation.
Read the comments. She enlightened lots of people who a) had never heard of Pushkin, or b) hadn't known he had African lineage, like Audubon, les Dumas, & etc.
Pushkin’s great-grandfather, Abram Gannibal, was from modern-day Cameroon. Pushkin had the same percentage of sub-Saharan African ancestry as Sally Hemings’ children (12.5%). He was, for want of a better term, an octoroon. Given the Anglo obsession with an idea of racial purity, enslaved persons with the aforementioned genetic makeup (7/8 white, 1/8 black) were not uncommon in the US. Within his 87.5% Northern European heritage was Russian, German, and Scandinavian (predominantly Swedish).
Estimated 99% of today's African American population is between 20 to 60% European genetically, no matter how dark or fair there skin color is. Are you planning to apply a standard emphasizing their, English , Scots German ancestry to all of us ? Is anyone?
@clementmckenzie7041 I was not, in fact, planning to apply a standard emphasising European ancestry within the Black American genome. I’m unsure as to which part of my comment implied otherwise. Are you addressing me purely for the sake of being seen, or is there an actual point to your comment?
@DrillWill Historians pretty much unanimously agree that he was from modern-day Cameroon. The Ethiopian/Eritrean hypothesis isn’t taken all that seriously in modern academic circles.
Fellow, SUNYA alum here. Because racial identity in America is evolving we’re in a time of lineage. He’d be considered a Russian in America today with African background. Roots to American chattel slavery is what creates Black in America. The recent SCOTUS decision on affirmative action addresses lineage and not just color in how group identity is shaped and recognized by law.
This reminded me of a book that I read years ago. I think the title was " Black Man In Red Russia ". As I recall , the Communist government before World War 2 , brought a small number of Black men to Russia as part of a social experiment. The men married Russian women and had children. They expected their children to look half-White , but some of the Black men freaked-out when their half-Russian children were Mongolian looking !!
@@coreylevine8095 Corey , starting from when I was in Middle School , I liked to go to the main branch of the library , which was only a few blocks from my house and read books on World History. So I had already known why the men`s half-Russian children would look that way. It was because of the Mongol invasions into Russia from centuries earlier.
I read about a completely different story of Pushkin's origins. He was a prince among the Ethiopian Emperor's wives and was traded to the Ottoman Empire for one of the Sultan's princes in a peace treaty. The Ottoman Empire later traded Pushkin in a swap for a Russian peace treaty. Puskin was not considered noble and an aristocrat because some Russian decided to be nice to him. The tzar knew quite well that he was of noble birth and treated him so.
You mentioned the Bacon Rebellion. I feel that it was a pivotal point in American history. Cooperation between the “races” could not be tolerated. And they still use that today. It was evident to me that BLM became a dividing line, in 2014.
What if? Great jumping off point. While America didn't have the same sort of class distinctions that existed in other cultures, the one-drop rule imposed a racial class system. Interesting contrast.
I was told it was an experiment suggested by the philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau, to educate a humble enslaved boy like he was prince and see how he will turn out.
Great video. But let´s not confuse the issues here. There were also Freedmen in the US slave states, and Puskin´s ancestor was more comperable to them. The reason Russia (and most of the non-American world) did not have a One-Drop Rule I suggest is that Africans were fleetingly uncommon. JUst as US race laws were ambiguous about Arab ethnic identity. If there were more the (White/Russain) establishment would likely would have found a reason to exclude them. Again, enlightening examination, but the comparisons go only so far.
Other countries have one drop. The reason that these kinds of people suddenly become “not black” is because he’s a major part of their culture. If he were a slave that died storming a castle everyone would understand he’s black, if he committed a terrorist attack in Moscow, he would be black.
You obviously have not traveled or study the true history... Black, African, West Indian and Caribbean people were plentiful. They were erased from HI-STORY .
..." it was his actions not his ancestry that really mattered" but his Ethiopian heritage is prevailing as well "! the ppl of Ethiopia may have been discriminated against because of their skin tone but they were a people who were never defeated and dark skin is beautiful, the western world was just a racist cess pool in the past!!! I cannot phantom growing up in the past I would of been a outlaw, at least in usa, or just killed. Today when I am attacked and targeted, preyed upon, and discriminated against I speak out knowing I will be heard, and not made into a criminal.
Everybody suggesting Alexandre Dumas next, I'd like to add Machado de Assis, a famous Brazilian writer who had an interesting relationship with being mixed race (if you need help with sources in Portuguese, just hit me up!)
Yes. I reread them all the time. Gogol's "The nose" is one of the most funny stories I have ever read. I chose my major after reading The Brother's Karamozov
I think it's worth it to look at the situation with serfdom during that time in Russia. This is very complicated because serfdom has a lot of parallels with slavery. If he was a nobleman and he was landed, then he owned serfs. He would be a man of African descent, in Russia, that owned white slaves.
Pushkin's origins to Cameron is contested regardless of the fancy studies and efforts made. The evidence showing that he was from Abyssinia (modern day Eritrea to be exact) is stronger. The Abyssinians in Eritrea had strong ties to the Ottomans who were partners in sea faring the Red Sea..and that was in the same period when Pushkin's his Great grandfather, Ganibal, was taken to Istanbul (where he was trained and educated) before he was sent to Russia and rose to the ranks of a military genius and nobleman. His history is well told in Eritrea. Much like the case of Cajuns, Abyssinians have a distinct collective identity group despite being diverse in categories and origins...which is why it could have been easy for him to be White passing possibly or not to be regarded as Black. Many Abyssinians who are pure bred for many generations can turn out to be very White looking..with porcelain skin and straight hair. Other Abyssinians consider themselves to be ethnic Arab or Semites/Jews more than Bantu Africans. Ganibal was a Prince of a (possibky Afar) nation before he was taken away and they are known to have distinct features.
Hey danielle, I think I figured out .. (after all these years) What the title of your channel means.. does it mean New York tennessee? Because I know you're originally from new york. And now you live in tennessee.. is that correct?
European history is dotted with black and mixed race people in Gannibal and Pushkin's circumstances. Alessandro de'Medici, the purported son of the Pope and a black servant woman was created Duke of Florence. The black nun of Morat , Louise Marie Therese was rumored to be the daughter of the Queen of France, but was more likely the king or his brothers child, Marie Antoinette adopted an African child who she raised with her other adopted children, General Dumas, Joseph Bologne the Chevalier who was master musician and swordsman, Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield born enslaved she became the first American black opera singer and became so famous that she received a command performance invitation to sing at Buckingham palace. For the king . Princess Sara Forbes Bonetta, the daughter of a deposed African chief sold into slavery, rescued by the British navy and presented to Queen Victoria, she would adopt her as her Godchild and see to her education and upbringing. History is full of these people. The limitations of our cultural point of view in the U.S. means if you are not black with proactive parents you are unlikely to ever learn about people like this
@@Casey2262 I don't know, and frankly neither do you. I do however know that Queen Charlotte was the 5x great-granddaughter of Maria de Sousa who was the black lover of the king of Portugal so all the kings add Queens who came after her have this black ancestry including the man who sits on the throne now. I also know that Princess Diana had a great-grandmother who was from India so her sons are European African and Indian ancestry one of them will be king of England history is rarely what we think it is and almost never what white people claim it is
@@clementmckenzie7041 You say you don't know and then proceed to spread misinformation purely based on old rumors without any genetic proof. Also, the only people who say this are those who just wish they were part 'black. There's also been no African DNA detected in any of those people at all, so you're right. You don't know what you're talking about.
FYI rape was a huge part of slavery in America,the majority of the west African women and their daughters to come were raped and had children by the European American “masters” generation after generation. We all have a good amount of white/ European ancestry so the majority of black people in America who had ancestors stolen from Africa and sold into slavery in America are “biracial” so it always puzzles me when mixed people in America with one parent who identifies as white starts adding up their amount of whiteness/ privilege in their bloodline as if it makes them different from every other black person in America. According to American laws at that time mulatto people in America were black and would have been a slave, they were treated somewhat differently as slaves because of privileges they had that darker slaves didn’t have but still a slave🤦🏾♀️🤷🏽♀️
Thank you so much for this very interesting work about Russia in the 18th and 19th centuries. At the same time millions of Russians were victims of serfdom which was abolished only in 1861 by Zar Alexander 2nd. For instance, the writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was the grandson of a former serf (serfs and slaves suffered the same exploitation)
Pushkin is considered one of the great poets and writers of Russia. He is one of major fugures of Russian Literature. Pushkin is considered Russian not African though he clearly had African ancestry.
This just demonstrates the ridiculousness of slavery. The amount of "Pushkins, Obama's, leontine Prices, Neil deGrassis" who were slaves . Americas eternal loss. Sadly a lot of Americans still just don't get it .
▶What would Pushkin's life have been like if he had lived in 1800s America?
👕 NYTN Merch: www.nytonashville.com
☕Send me a coffee!: ko-fi.com/nytn13#linkModal
▶ Connect on Patreon: www.patreon.com/NYTN
Very interesting I've heard the name but didn't know the history
All of these guys would’ve experienced threatened lynching in “Jim Crow American Law” and been forced to the “Back of the bus”..
Weird that you don't care about the blk slaves today or that the white ppl stopped slavery even died to stop it
Well, there is a region in Russia where blacks have always lived. In Spanish, the writer who writes for another is also called black, like those that Shakespeare used, I think in English they are also called black.
I really like your videos, but you are comparing incomparable things. You can't, as you have, compare the plight of the Black population in the South to a Russian, mixed, race prodigy with some African heritage in his lineage. If you want to make that comparison, you have to find a Black equivalent, a mulatto who during the same period achieved similarly to Pushkin because he had opportunities similar to his White peers among the White scions of the antebellum South. Are there none? I wonder. I've read fictional stories of such people, one by Charles W. Chesnutt. does Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806) qualify? Or Jean-Baptiste Point du Sable (1745-1818), the founder of Chicago? QED
I recently had this conversation with a new friend from Russia. She confirmed that they are taught that Pushkin was Black.
yes, I think the national conversation around him vs how it would be here in the states is fascinating
@@nytnPushkin's descendants would marry into noble and prominent families all over Europe. One of them the countess Sophie of merenberg was the niece of the grand Duke Luxembourg. And married into the Romanov dynasty. I wonder if his descendants see themselves as anything other than wealthy Aristocratic white people
@@Casualphilosopher-db9gyJUST IMAGINE IF YOU NEANDERTHALS AND BARBARIANS NEVER CAME IN CONTACT WITH HUE MANS?? YOU’D STILL BE IN CAVES!!😅😅😅
Interesting. I was educated in Russia and no, we weren't really taught that.
The fact that his grandfather was Black African is well-known and mentioned in school, but race does not have the same place in Russian history as it does in the US. What social group you were born into mattered more. Serf peasants and their owners didn't differ in race but family origin.
The racial identity of Pushkin is just simply not treated as something that important in Russian context to discuss. He was born into the culture, the language and the faith and was part of Russian aristocracy, so he was a Russian writer. Another thing is Russian understanding of race is not so much blood percentages but the way you look.
@@Casualphilosopher-db9gy So you wrote all that long paragraph just to say he’s a Black man. 🙄 Every time a Black person does something monumental y’all go out of your way to deny their Blackness. How insecure. Even Pushkin acknowledged he was Black.
Pushkin, Alexander Dumas (Three Musketeers creator) and Chevalier all have these deep African linages. I even saw a monument for Pushkin when I was in Addis Ababa Ethiopia.The Russian government placed this monument in Ethiopia but I haven’t seen anything like it anywhere else.
Don't forget Thomas-Alexandre Dumas (1762-1806) was a French general during the Revolutionary Wars who was Alexander Dumas father. Yanga Gasper and Vicente Guerrero are both in Mexico. I am so glad more and more coming out!
Elizabeth Barrett Browning considered himself to be Black
There is a Puskin statue at George Washington University in DC. It is from the year 2000 as a guift from the city of Moscow and there apparently is a Walt Whitman Statue reciprically installed in Moscow. It prominantly mentions his African heritage and pride about it. WOrth looking into the orifins if the Etheopian statue. I would guess there are more statues eleswhere. Thanks or the info.
Pushkin has a museum in Moscow 😉
Dumas,Pushkin and Chevalier St George weren't Black they were biracial men... Biracial doesn't make you black just ask a Biracial person and they will tell you that..
Alexander Pushkin is one of my favorite poets. I'm so glad you shared his story.
He was such a larger than life character
Never read him. I don't read novels.
Pushkin's "a single leaf which has outlasted it's season will be trembling still ." That poem has carried me through tough times. Thank you young lady. Pushkin is great example of man who is his own creation.
I must read this poem.
We need a series of these people from the past that would be considered black
Only if they are fully Black African in ancestry, otherwise they are just admixed, Creoles, mestizos...whatever, but not Black African.
i love how you take 'academic' subjects and 'personalize' them to give us a broad AND narrow view at the same time. brilliant!
The work you do is so Important. Keep on keeping on.
British actor Peter Ustinov's father was of part Russian and Ethiopian ancestry.
um no he was not he was part of a russian polish family that colonized ethiopia.
@@silverkitty2503 His paternal grandfather's line was Russian. His paternal grandmother's line was German/Polish/Jewish/Ethiopian. His great-great-grandmother was Ethiopian.
Apart from Italian occupation in the 1930s, no European country ever colonized Ethiopia.
@@jdee3421 That would equal practically zero Sub-Saharan ancestry.
@@JustJoe711 Correct, only about 1/16th, which still qualified under most one-drop laws.
@@jdee3421 Law or no law the one drop rule is utter nonsense.. & now other's are trying to use it to " benefit " their own opposite agendas.
Thank you for your videos and your acceptance of your African ancestry.
How many other poets, artists, scientists, etc, were lost to the institution of involuntary servitude. How many weren't as lucky as Pushkin? Countless...
This is what I was thinking as well
How many are we still losing today to racism. A study by Citigroup estimated that racism over the last 20 years has cost the US economy 16 trillion dollars. Not insignificant in a country with a 21 trillion annual GDP. The loss to national productivity is ongoing
It’s a little uncomfortable being asked to imagine a world without Pushkin when 13 million people never had a hope in exploring their potential and talents. The levels of wild in that statement and the irony creates a fine balance between the absurdity of a race thinking they are better than another and being outraged by the indignation of someone being treated badly because they are in part from that ‘lowly’ race. It’s a tricky one but not really, because he claimed his African heritage and significantly shaped literature as a Russian. It may seem preposterous that a ‘white’ man is considered black but it’s a racist system that made it all about colour as opposed to people being able to feel good about their heritage. I must subscribe…!
And Pushkin was a man. Alice Walker wrote a great essay about a woman must feel knowing that her work would not be recognized because she's a woman. Whenever we read a poem or see an object that reads "Anonymous," it might have been done by your ancestor.
What are you going on about? Involuntary servitude? You mean slavery, so say it. Pushkin wasn't a slave. Poets, artists, scientists etc, come off it sport. Those slaves ended up slaves in Africa by Black Africans and sold, and they weren't poets, artists in the European sense or scientists.
You shouldn't exaggerate. Do you think Mr Tyson would have ended up as an astrophysicist had his Black African ancestors stayed in Africa?
You are an amazing resource, Danielle. Thanks for this deep dive.
I enjoyed this discussion thoroughly and I've heard of him, but I have never read him. I will be buying his book ASAP. I'm so proud of what he accomplished, and his life is a testimony. If our ancestors had been treated equally here, (In this nation), how far we could have come, not just as a people, but as a nation. Thank you.
Many Americans have no knowledge of Pushkin. I think it helps those people to understand his importance in Russian culture to use this comparison: Pushkin is to Russians as Shakespeare is to English speaking nations.
Good morning neighbor lady, always enjoy your programs!😊😊
Good morning!
Alexander Pusking was a "rock star" in Russia. He wrote a series that was published in the local papers. People lined up to get their hands on the publication to be the first to know what happened next in his series. Truly rock star status.
It wasn't really the actions that mattered, it was the class. Being taken under the Tzar's wing is what mattered.
@Casualphilosopher-db9gy probably! that we can't say for sure, it's speculation. But what's sure is whatever your origins or skin color, class was the primary distinction in old day Europe while race was secondary, while the reverse has mainly been true for the US's whole existence.
This is precisely the take away! Statistical analysis based on race vs class provides false conclusions ppl are yearning to accept because of social conditioning... False because purely correlation not causation. The cause is class not race.
I just have to say, you do more in making the better, then you know!
how wonderful!
I always wondered if he and Alexandre Dumas, author of the Three Musketeers and Count of Monte Cristo and Man in the Iron Mask, who was also Black ever met considering they were contemporaries.
no, but there was a small community of mixed white people like Dumas in Paris and they used to hang out together
@ Yes. That part I knew from books like the Black Jacobeans (required reading in my parents’ house 😂). Same as true for the Dumas’ father (who was the one who really won Napoleon’s battles for him), there was a large group of Black European nobility/aristocrats.
@@SunyattaAmen Neither of them were black they were mixed.
Thank you for this video.
Very good presentation. Thanks for the historical knowledge droped. 👍🏾
I am so glad. Thanks for watching!
Outstanding podcast! Outstanding
About the choice of the name Gannibal At that time Educated Europeans still believed that the General Hannibal was a black African. So you often found black servants in noble households with names like Hannibal, Balthazar or some other name Europeans associated with illustrious Africans.
Thank you for another informative video. I had heard of Pushkin’s name, but knew nothing of his background or history. You make a great point about how his life would have been completely different had he come to the USA at the same time in history. It’s very sad to think about all of the lost potential that so many people of African origin experienced because they were brought to the USA as slaves, and birthed many generations under the same circumstances.
The same holds true for the indigenous people of the Americas, who had thriving civilizations and cultures on the continents of the Americas, until their lives were tragically altered by the arrival of European explorers.
I sent this program to a friend in Santa Fe who has (or had) a place called Pushkin Gallery. Kenneth Pushkin - a descendant of THE Pushkin. Hopefully he'll get my email and see this program and be in touch with you about it.
Interesting video Danielle, I really enjoyed it. I know there was a group of African Americans who went to Moscow to escape racism. That's all I know about it though, not sure what time period or the circumstances. I would like to know more about that if that's something you would like to explore.
I am a pretty well educated man. But I tell Ya’ you just schooled me on someone I NEVER even heard of. RESPECT!!!
Live and learn. Now read him!
Alexander Dumas' father was a black slave fathered by a French aristocrat. Please do a story on this family when you get a chance.
I actually cover him a bit in an upcoming video! He deserves his own though
His father was not a slave. He was enslaved. There is a difference. Words matter
@@axjohnI'm not trying to be funny, but can you enlighten me as to the difference? I'm black. I'm also Creole. But for all intents and purposes when people see me I'm just black. Does it have to do with emphasizing the humanity over the label (slave)?
Alexander Dumas Father was a White French Nobleman descendant of the Normans of France basically nobility
Dumas mother was a Black Female slave hence his African maternal ancestry
Alexandre Dumas' father was Thomas-Alexandre Dumas. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas was born in St. Domingue, now known as Haiti. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas' mother was a black Haitian slave named Marie-Cessette Dumas and his father was a white Frenchman named Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas lived in St. Domingue/Haiti for a bit, then his father moved him to France. Thomas Dumas went to French schools, and then joined the French Army. Thomas Dumas was a successful soldier and became a general. Dumas then married a white French woman. Thomas Dumas a soldier in Napoleon Bonaparte's military. Later on Dumas was disrespected and demoted by Bonaparte. When Dumas retired, Bonaparte wouldn't pay Dumas his pension. Dumas died when his son Alexandre Dumas was only 3 yrs old. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas' military service helped inspire his son Alexandre Dumas to write stories and plays about soldiers and adventures such as the Three Musketeers.
Alexandre Dumas did get to see Napoleon Bonaparte once. Bonaparte's carriage was passing through town one day and Dumas looked through the window. Described Bonaparte as looking tired and defeated.
Alexandre Dumas, I don't recall him ever identifying his race. But made several comments defending his black ancestry from a man who insulted him. I read a couple times that Dumas' works were popular in the United States and was invited to visit. But he supposedly heard about the One Drop Rule at the time and was afraid to visit.
Another amazing video sis. Keep it up!
Thank you for sharing this information 🌍🌎
I love your content. So many of your videos are so interesting I think you deserve to have a tv show. Perhaps, on the history channel. 😁
That's so nice, you are too kind!!
I love your bravery. Thank you.
Thank you. 🖖🏻
This is such a mind boggling, amazing story & thinking about the arc of his life in Russia vs what it would have been in America is just 💔.
Really happy to hear others speak of Pushkins contribution. As a parent and Afro cultural animator over the last 30 years lI have introduced him as a a writer of African Russian heritage. I live in Montreal Canada and bring him among many other notable ancestors to the classrooms of children 5 to 12 years of age. No pushback or controversy from teachers or principles. Through Afro heritage month. Kwanzaa and just exploring black prèsebce throughout history my aim is always to let youth and adults know that we have always been present and making meaningful contributions through out the world history. 2 other people that I introduce are Queen Sophie Charlotte and Ludwig von Beethoven. Eyebrows get raised from staff sometime lol. I lol. So many amazing Africans to discover. I love what you are doing with your Chanel! Don’t give up! ❤️🖤💚🙌🏾
Thanks. Never knew about this guy.
Eye-opening history lesson.
Just discovered your channel
Great stuff
I love Russian literature
Crime and Punishment and War and Peace are my 2 favorite novels
Great hair, Danielle!
Very interesting story! TFS! ❤
Thank you for watching!
It’s interesting & peculiar how the entire world only cares about the great grandfather & the great grandson when it comes to the Pushkin. These two are the most famous but Pushkin’s grand oncle & his grand father who were still very visibly Afro-Russian, were extremely successful as well: His father Ossip served as a judge at the court in Pskow (Pleskau) & was a councillor of the court of Sankt Petersburg - despite being a bigamist which different from his colour was considered a crime. His grand uncle, Iwan Petrovich Hannibal, was a first lieutenant & especially victorious during the Russian-Turkish war. Alexander Pushkin’s mother (daughter of Ossip) though technically only a quarter-Black was referred to as the “the beautiful Creole”, “the beautiful African” or simply as “the Mooress” despite being really pale Black (at least by judging by her portraits). Btw for Swedish & German readers : Pushkin’s great grandmother was the Swedish-German, Christina Siöberg. The entire & very impressive pedigree of Aleksandr Pushkin is online. Sadly, due to the circumstances, the names of his paternal Ethiopian great great parents are not included.
Phyllis Wheatley is an example of who “owns you “ is how you were treated.
I know of Pushkin but I had no idea about his African heritage till I saw your video. Thank you so much for all that you do.❤ Watching you from Nigeria 🇳🇬
Thank you for watching! We have a lot to learn from each other.
@@nytn Indeed. The feature is bright and exciting.💕🤝 🙏
Nigeria! 28%
@ Knowing and embracing our identity, removes disorientation and centres us and helps us move forward in the clear direction.
Thank you
Thank you
Thank you.
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤never known pushkin has black ancestor❤❤❤❤❤❤love your work,you look beautiful love your program
Love your work!
Thanks for watching!❤️
Thanks for sharing
He more Biracial then Black plus Europe didn't have the One-Drop Rules back then
“more biracial“ ...
Biracial is incorrect too. Biracial means is one parent black, one white. Bi means half. He would be more like Prince Harry's children, mixed, more European ancestry than African. Only in the good ole USA still hanging on to Jim Crow rules would you call him Black.
But his Black ancestry was still visible on his face. So, while not one drop rule, it would still have been clear to everyone he had black ancestry.
Were both parents mixed?
@@sgonzo5572 No his mother were a White European and his Descendants are mostly White now
Your next successful mixed race writer should be Alexandre Dumas, the grandson of a Frenchman, the Marquis de la Pailleterie and an enslaved woman of African descent Marie-Cessette Dumas, through his father General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas who himself was born a slave on the island colony of Santa Domingo.
Oh, wow, as a Russian, I didn't really expect to see a video about him here. I feel like he's not nearly as well known outside of Russia as other Russian writers. Even though he is THE Russian writer/poet.
I can be wrong, I'm not the best at history, but at that time in Russia who you are in a society was dictated first of all by your "class" origin (noble or not, free or someone's peasant, wealthy or not) and not necessarily ethnicity or race. And to belong to the culture it was important to speak the language and be of the same faith (Russian orthodox). So, a European of Catholic faith could be viewed more as an outsider than a person who has a different ethnical origin but was born into the culture, the language and faith. Since Pushkin's grandfather was educated and treated like a noble man basically, Pushkin inherited the noble status. Another thing is that he was just rare, there were simply not enough people with African ancestry to establish some sort of "rule" regarding the status of those people.
Wow. This was interesting. Thanks.
Glad you liked it!
Interesting. I wasn't aware of this and I have been involved with the Russian Community in education as a language teacher. Thanks for sharing this "the father of Russian literature" well many, many people worldwide can also trace some African ancestry if they were to try or do DNA testing. But I must say that the United States from my observations with populations around the world, the U.S. has taken race to a whole different level and in a way that makes other societies uncomfortable too.
Danielle, Pushkin was a "unique case" of a Russian nobleman of color. He was a product of his time, having inherited from his father 1200 serfs. Although he did not intend to librate his serfs, he produced lovely poems on liberty.
Serfs were people of the same race as their owners.
The serfs were treated very cruelly. They were lynched, exchanged for hunting dogs, children were taken away from their parents and sold to other landowners. Isn't that slavery? Famous writers and poets of that era wrote about it.
“In Russia the term serf (bonded peasant') meant an unfree peasant who, unlike a slave, historically could be sold only together with the land to which they were "attached". However, this stopped being a requirement by the 19th century, and serfs were practically indistinguishable from slaves.” (Wikipedia)
Thank you for ad ding this comment
Emancipation in Russia took place in 1861 and was not for reasons of ideology, but because the Empress believed it would be better for the finances of the empire.
For a comparison of the treatment of serfs in Russia and slaves in America during that era, Unfree Labor by Peter Kolchin is authoritative.
I think it important to note that there were mixed individuals among colonizing forces.
@Percept2024 imho, constructive criticism is good… no matter the person. The point is, had Pushkin been born in the USA his talents most likely would not have been allowed to manifest.
I understand your point. The same thing happens within the White race , where people of one nationality or another will be bragging that some famous person was a member of their tribe , and I think to myself " I wouldn`t be bragging about that character ! )
Well there was Phyllis Wheatley. When she became a lauded poet most American women could not read or write, much less an enslaved African woman.
@@clementmckenzie7041 Yes. A woman was LESS threatening than a man.
Here is another great author who has a similar story - who everyone has heard or read his books - Alexandre Dumas- 3 Musketeers and the Count of Monte Christo - France
I. Am happy that Pushkin is being mentioned but I would like to correct you he was from Eritrea not Cameroon I know this because he is my family by blood on my grandmothers side
Time to do Alexandre Dumas and Chevalier
Quarter black, depends on what he identified with at that time
Great grandparent would be one eighth, not a 4th.
Read the book:100 Amazing Facts Of The Negro by J.A. Rogers
He would be considered 💯 black in America
From his writing on the subject he considered himself a Russian Aristocrat with African ancestry
Perhaps Russians did not see slavery exclusively as a colour issue.
They didn't, most Russians were enslaved to the owner of the land they were born on at that time. Slavery was a condition of birth to them . General Gannibal had not been born a slave and has never lived as a slave in Russia.
I wouldn't go too far about romanticizing Russia's racial or class inclusiveness at that time; my Jewish ancestors had to get the hell out of there due to oppression, persecution and murders. (pogroms).
Apparently they had the same laws, if his great-grandfather was “gifted to anyone “ ?
They were “lucky “ to survive.
Had he or his grandfather's experience been set in usa, it is likely that his situation would have been similar to that of Prince Abdul Rahman.
He lived 40 years a slave was married in 1794, had 9 children, spoke 5 languages, was educated in Timnuktu and Djeenne.
He and his wife was finally repatriated to Monrovia, Liberia, through the efforts of the American Colonalzation Society, Secretary of State Henry Clay, combined with Andrew Marschalk newspaper editort, Dr. Cox, and Rev. Galludette.
His chidren remained enslaved. He died several months after his repatriation.
Do one on Anni-Frid Lyngstad the singer of ABBA and the Lebensborn history in Germany and Norway
This is such old news! Yes, he did have African ancestry. Now try researching the French author Collette, who also had African ancestry.
yes, history research is always old news :)
@@nytnTouché Danielle, touché!
Read the comments. She enlightened lots of people who a) had never heard of Pushkin, or b) hadn't known he had African lineage, like Audubon, les Dumas, & etc.
Pushkin’s great-grandfather, Abram Gannibal, was from modern-day Cameroon. Pushkin had the same percentage of sub-Saharan African ancestry as Sally Hemings’ children (12.5%). He was, for want of a better term, an octoroon. Given the Anglo obsession with an idea of racial purity, enslaved persons with the aforementioned genetic makeup (7/8 white, 1/8 black) were not uncommon in the US.
Within his 87.5% Northern European heritage was Russian, German, and Scandinavian (predominantly Swedish).
Estimated 99% of today's African American population is between 20 to 60% European genetically, no matter how dark or fair there skin color is. Are you planning to apply a standard emphasizing their, English , Scots German ancestry to all of us ? Is anyone?
@clementmckenzie7041 I was not, in fact, planning to apply a standard emphasising European ancestry within the Black American genome. I’m unsure as to which part of my comment implied otherwise. Are you addressing me purely for the sake of being seen, or is there an actual point to your comment?
Sally Hemmings children were Black.
False. He was kidnapped in Eritrea by the ottoman empire
@DrillWill Historians pretty much unanimously agree that he was from modern-day Cameroon. The Ethiopian/Eritrean hypothesis isn’t taken all that seriously in modern academic circles.
I've known about Pushkin since childhood and I would consider him biracial ❤❤❤😊😊😊
Fellow, SUNYA alum here. Because racial identity in America is evolving we’re in a time of lineage. He’d be considered a Russian in America today with African background. Roots to American chattel slavery is what creates Black in America. The recent SCOTUS decision on affirmative action addresses lineage and not just color in how group identity is shaped and recognized by law.
This reminded me of a book that I read years ago. I think the title was " Black Man In Red Russia ". As I recall , the Communist government before World War 2 , brought a small number of Black men to Russia as part of a social experiment. The men married Russian women and had children. They expected their children to look half-White , but some of the Black men freaked-out when their half-Russian children were Mongolian looking !!
Maybe they married Mixed Asian Russian women
@@coreylevine8095 Corey , starting from when I was in Middle School , I liked to go to the main branch of the library , which was only a few blocks from my house and read books on World History. So I had already known why the men`s half-Russian children would look that way. It was because of the Mongol invasions into Russia from centuries earlier.
Europeans should never mix with Sub-Saharans.
I read about a completely different story of Pushkin's origins.
He was a prince among the Ethiopian Emperor's wives and was traded to the Ottoman Empire for one of the Sultan's princes in a peace treaty. The Ottoman Empire later traded Pushkin in a swap for a Russian peace treaty. Puskin was not considered noble and an aristocrat because some Russian decided to be nice to him. The tzar knew quite well that he was of noble birth and treated him so.
He looks just like my family members
The sad part is just talking about this is considered controversial & anti american by some???? lol
You mentioned the Bacon Rebellion. I feel that it was a pivotal point in American history. Cooperation between the “races” could not be tolerated. And they still use that today. It was evident to me that BLM became a dividing line, in 2014.
As an educated person, I and most of “the old woke folks,” knew since childhood about Pushkin and his ancestry. We read Ebony magazines.
YOU ARE AWESOME DANIELLE I SAY THIS AS MIXED RACE MANY PLUS BLACK AND WHITE. A LOT MORE...APPRECIATE WHAT YOU DO
What if? Great jumping off point. While America didn't have the same sort of class distinctions that existed in other cultures, the one-drop rule imposed a racial class system. Interesting contrast.
it's really shocking, I never thought of it before.
The Nazis who visited America in the 1930's believed American segregation was too harsh to work in their plans ... Imagine that @@nytn
I agree! I actually did a video on that LOL. Thanks for this comment xo
I was told it was an experiment suggested by the philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau, to educate a humble enslaved boy like he was prince and see how he will turn out.
Yeah Eddie Murphy made a movie about it called trading places. 😂😂
@@daharris41 Although no Russian prince lost his titles, in the 18th century gamble, just a enslaved boy who was adopted as a prince. ^_^
Oh, how about reading Eugene Onegin :)
There is a great version of Onegin with Ralph Fiennes and I enjoyed the movie too it was sad though.
The only Russian author I have read is Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. It reminds me a lot of my own life and family.
that is the book that changed my life!
Ever heard of Gustav Badin who were adopted by the Queen of Sweden and Yasuke who became the first Non Asians and Black Samurai in Japan
I have not!
@nytn Look them up you be suppised about those men how they interacts with Royals in Sweden and Japan
Thanks for sharing! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustav_Badin
I hadn't heard about Pushkin.
Didn't one of his descendants marry a Mountbatten who is related to the British royal family?
Great video. But let´s not confuse the issues here. There were also Freedmen in the US slave states, and Puskin´s ancestor was more comperable to them. The reason Russia (and most of the non-American world) did not have a One-Drop Rule I suggest is that Africans were fleetingly uncommon. JUst as US race laws were ambiguous about Arab ethnic identity. If there were more the (White/Russain) establishment would likely would have found a reason to exclude them. Again, enlightening examination, but the comparisons go only so far.
Other countries have one drop. The reason that these kinds of people suddenly become “not black” is because he’s a major part of their culture. If he were a slave that died storming a castle everyone would understand he’s black, if he committed a terrorist attack in Moscow, he would be black.
You obviously have not traveled or study the true history... Black, African, West Indian and Caribbean people were plentiful. They were erased from HI-STORY .
..." it was his actions not his ancestry that really mattered" but his Ethiopian heritage is prevailing as well "! the ppl of Ethiopia may have been discriminated against because of their skin tone but they were a people who were never defeated and dark skin is beautiful, the western world was just a racist cess pool in the past!!! I cannot phantom growing up in the past I would of been a outlaw, at least in usa, or just killed. Today when I am attacked and targeted, preyed upon, and discriminated against I speak out knowing I will be heard, and not made into a criminal.
Everybody suggesting Alexandre Dumas next, I'd like to add Machado de Assis, a famous Brazilian writer who had an interesting relationship with being mixed race (if you need help with sources in Portuguese, just hit me up!)
The father of Russian literature had African heritage!
Second that on Russian literature. Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, etc.
Yes. I reread them all the time. Gogol's "The nose" is one of the most funny stories I have ever read. I chose my major after reading The Brother's Karamozov
I think it's worth it to look at the situation with serfdom during that time in Russia. This is very complicated because serfdom has a lot of parallels with slavery. If he was a nobleman and he was landed, then he owned serfs. He would be a man of African descent, in Russia, that owned white slaves.
GRAND FATHER HENRY GOINS
Pushkin's origins to Cameron is contested regardless of the fancy studies and efforts made. The evidence showing that he was from Abyssinia (modern day Eritrea to be exact) is stronger. The Abyssinians in Eritrea had strong ties to the Ottomans who were partners in sea faring the Red Sea..and that was in the same period when Pushkin's his Great grandfather, Ganibal, was taken to Istanbul (where he was trained and educated) before he was sent to Russia and rose to the ranks of a military genius and nobleman. His history is well told in Eritrea.
Much like the case of Cajuns, Abyssinians have a distinct collective identity group despite being diverse in categories and origins...which is why it could have been easy for him to be White passing possibly or not to be regarded as Black. Many Abyssinians who are pure bred for many generations can turn out to be very White looking..with porcelain skin and straight hair. Other Abyssinians consider themselves to be ethnic Arab or Semites/Jews more than Bantu Africans. Ganibal was a Prince of a (possibky Afar) nation before he was taken away and they are known to have distinct features.
Hey danielle, I think I figured out .. (after all these years) What the title of your channel means.. does it mean New York tennessee? Because I know you're originally from new york. And now you live in tennessee.. is that correct?
NY To Nashville ! NYTN. Just came to me one today 🥰🥰
I kind of figured it out LOL @@nytn
European history is dotted with black and mixed race people in Gannibal and Pushkin's circumstances. Alessandro de'Medici, the purported son of the Pope and a black servant woman was created Duke of Florence. The black nun of Morat , Louise Marie Therese was rumored to be the daughter of the Queen of France, but was more likely the king or his brothers child, Marie Antoinette adopted an African child who she raised with her other adopted children, General Dumas, Joseph Bologne the Chevalier who was master musician and swordsman, Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield born enslaved she became the first American black opera singer and became so famous that she received a command performance invitation to sing at Buckingham palace. For the king . Princess Sara Forbes Bonetta, the daughter of a deposed African chief sold into slavery, rescued by the British navy and presented to Queen Victoria, she would adopt her as her Godchild and see to her education and upbringing. History is full of these people. The limitations of our cultural point of view in the U.S. means if you are not black with proactive parents you are unlikely to ever learn about people like this
@@clementmckenzie7041 King James 1 Charles 1 and Charles 2 were all black Kings on the throne of England
@@aussar01 You wish lol.
@@Casey2262 I don't know, and frankly neither do you. I do however know that Queen Charlotte was the 5x great-granddaughter of Maria de Sousa who was the black lover of the king of Portugal so all the kings add Queens who came after her have this black ancestry including the man who sits on the throne now. I also know that Princess Diana had a great-grandmother who was from India so her sons are European African and Indian ancestry one of them will be king of England history is rarely what we think it is and almost never what white people claim it is
@@clementmckenzie7041 You say you don't know and then proceed to spread misinformation purely based on old rumors without any genetic proof. Also, the only people who say this are those who just wish they were part 'black. There's also been no African DNA detected in any of those people at all, so you're right. You don't know what you're talking about.
@@Casey2262 These guys are so desperate to be European.
FYI rape was a huge part of slavery in America,the majority of the west African women and their daughters to come were raped and had children by the European American “masters” generation after generation. We all have a good amount of white/ European ancestry so the majority of black people in America who had ancestors stolen from Africa and sold into slavery in America are “biracial” so it always puzzles me when mixed people in America with one parent who identifies as white starts adding up their amount of whiteness/ privilege in their bloodline as if it makes them different from every other black person in America. According to American laws at that time mulatto people in America were black and would have been a slave, they were treated somewhat differently as slaves because of privileges they had that darker slaves didn’t have but still a slave🤦🏾♀️🤷🏽♀️
I really enjoyed your counterfactual analysis. It’s very insightful. Thank God Pushkin was not born in 19th century USA.
Thank you so much for this very interesting work about Russia in the 18th and 19th centuries. At the same time millions of Russians were victims of serfdom which was abolished only in 1861 by Zar Alexander 2nd. For instance, the writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was the grandson of a former serf (serfs and slaves suffered the same exploitation)
Pushkin is considered one of the great poets and writers of Russia. He is one of major fugures of Russian Literature.
Pushkin is considered Russian not African though he clearly had African ancestry.
Definitely some profound history rhymes with Yasuke.
This just demonstrates the ridiculousness of slavery. The amount of "Pushkins, Obama's, leontine Prices, Neil deGrassis" who were slaves . Americas eternal loss. Sadly a lot of Americans still just don't get it .
Imagine a world that willfully destroyed thousands of Pushkins. Essentially crippling it's own collective intelligence forever.
Alexander Pushkin was an Octoroon because he has one African great grandparent while the remainder of his ancestry is European.
The original Europeans were black Benjamin Franklin said the Russians in 1751 were all black
I can pretty much guarantee that he would not be considered Black today if he wasn't famous🤣
@@bigcoop3717 Cool story but Pushkin is still Slavic and you people have zero genetic tie to him.
@bigcoop3717 you Americans are so delusional it's really sad...
@@marinadesousa134 He's a Sub-Saharan American that's all you can expect from his kind.