3 chapters across the catalog
A clip featuring Matthew Knowles, father of Beyoncé, details the "brown paper bag test" formerly used at Fisk University to determine admission based on skin tone. The hosts express shock that such practices continued into the 1970s at historically Black colleges. They discuss how successful Black men like O.J. Simpson or Tiger Woods are sometimes "grafted" into white society, effectively bypassing traditional racial barriers.
Matthew Knowles recounts his experience at Fisk University in 1972, where the school still utilized the "brown paper bag test" for admissions. Photos were compared against a bag to ensure students were not too dark, unless they were athletes or from exceptionally wealthy families. The hosts characterize this as a clear example of institutional racism occurring within black institutions.
The "brown paper bag test" and "pencil test" are discussed as historical methods used by black sororities and elite families to exclude those with darker skin or certain hair textures. Alicia Garza is noted for acknowledging that a spectrum exists where those closer to "white" are generally better off in the US.
