The heartbroken Afrikaner teenager had barely settled into her new life when the apartheid forced her and Zwane to leave their home. Still, her brothers refused to see her again and intentionally hid Sannie's death from her. | Source: YouTube.com/Our Life. BY Women and Hollywood October 30, 2009. Sandras case was even more interesting as she was born to white parents but was blessed with the physiognomy of African ancestors and she was treated as white by her family. I had to learn to go on with my life and forget what happened. | Source: YouTube.com/Our Life. Once her family was all under one roof, Sandra felt strong enough to reignite the search for her own mother and father. It was March 10, 1966. When She Was White, The True Story Of A Family Divided By Race by Judith Stone (Miramax Books, 8.99). Rory Carroll reports from Johannesburg, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Remember that 5% is a. population average, not the ancestry of any given individual. But in those cases the parents themselves were often of mixed ancestry (or at least one was). For Abraham, the idea that his wife might have consorted with a black man, making him the most humiliated of cuckolds, was unthinkable (under South Africa's Immorality Acts, it was illegal to have sex with, or even kiss, a member of another race). Months short of her death, Sannie was bubbly and alert: "Now tell me again, about the children." Over atThe RootKeith Adkins has a post,Sandra Laing: Born Black with White Parents: Im no geneticist or biologist,but it looks like Sandra is a product of an black South African and maybe a white Afrikaneer. The teachers and parents fought for four years to remove Sandra from the school because she looked different from everyone else. , the putative father accepting the child as his. But only one person knows the true cost of the decision, that day, to hound a girl from her school, and that is Sandra herself. Sandra recalled visiting her mom with her oldest son, Henry. Is it possible she was adopted? If 5% non-white ancestry is the expectation for Afrikaners, and ~50% are 0-5, then there is a long tail which extends out into domains of substantial non-white ancestry. Her brothers also were high yellow but light enough to pass for white. The question here is what is the comparable likelihood of Sandra Laings mother having an affair with a black man. Within a year, convinced that her father no longer loved her, Sandra eloped with Petrus. This story will shock you! Her parents, Abraham and Sannie Laing, were white - indeed, as members of the Nationalist Party, they were fervent supporters of South Africa's apartheid regime - and yet their daughter undeniably looked black, with her brown skin and tightly curled hair. Sandra Laing (born 26 November 1955) is a South African woman who was classified as Coloured by authorities during the apartheid era, due to her skin colour and hair texture, although she was the child of at least three generations of ancestors who had been regarded as white. Sandra Laing as a little girl. Today there are ~3 million Afrikaners. She entered the world in 1955, a beautiful baby by all accounts, who could be expected to grow up in a close-knit family amid mines of gold and forests of pine. In 1987, Sandra's life took a pleasant turn when she met a truck driver, Johannes Motlaung. She was born dark to white parents in South Africa during . Sandra and her mother were finally reconciled not long before the older woman's death. A few years ago I thumbed through a book which detailed Laings tumultuous life, When She Was White: The True Story of a Family Divided By Race. By Catherine O' Brien for MailOnline Updated: 13:23 EST, 19 December 2008, Although both Sandra Laing's parents were white South Africans, she looked black. It has a happy ending, of sorts, and one which is scheduled to hit bookshops and cinemas now that Hollywood has caught wind of the story. It was a joyful reunion, but the aftermath was marred by the fury of Sandra's brothers. Back then, no paternity test could prove beyond doubt that Abraham was Sandra's father. Sandra with her mother and brother Adriaan. Sandra had suffered at the hands of bullies who had called her mean names including blackie and frizzhead and instead of the authorities to do something about it, she was regarded as the instigator. These are the best Videogames deals youll find online. In January 2000, Sandra stood at the entrance to a visiting room twisting a white handkerchief in her hands. To support her children, Sandra took on a cleaning job, but within a year she became seriously ill. Doctors diagnosed cancer of the womb, and because she needed surgery, she was persuaded to have her three children fostered. But two individuals who look white? Her African features were almost certainly a throwback to an unknown ancestor whose DNA, having lain dormant for generations, had emerged in her. The tight black curly hair and ever-darkening skin was noticeable to all and Sandra remembers being told by her mother to avoid the sun. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. Sandra and her brothers are still alive. At 10 years old, parents at her primary school petitioned for her expulsion, deeming it unacceptable for a young 'black' girl to be educated . Meet the real Sandra Laing. By now Sandra felt more at ease with non-whites and at the age of 16 she eloped with a Zulu-speaking vegetable-seller, Petrus Zwane. In. While Sannie was happy to see her daughter and grandkid, she told Sandra to leave before her father returned. Shop the best selection of deals on Cat Supplies now. Across the total genome the ancestrally distinctive elements will not differ much between siblings because the error of, decreases as you increase the number of trials (thinking of each gene as a trial). This, of course, did not stop her dehumanization until at age 16, she decided to elope to Swaziland with her black lover and get married. Nevertheless,if both Laings are physically European in appearance, where exactly are those African genes which re-express in Sandra? Sandra had now gained a black family, but she lost her white one tragically. Finally, in 1987, Sandra's life turned a corner when a truck driver called Johannes Motlaung began courting her. The Urban Woman Magazine Editorial Team is made up of seasoned writers and editors who have a keen eye for detail and a passion for all things urban. Skin is the heartbreaking true story of Sandra Laing (played by Sophie Okonedo) as a woman with black skin born to white parents in apartheid S. Africa. 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Judy Stone, a contributing editor of Oprah magazine, expects to publish a biography next year and Anthony Fabian, a British producer and director, has a $5m (3.12m) contract with Miramax to make the film. In the midst of all this, Sandra Laing a black child, was born to white parents. We also encourage everyone to report any crime incident they witness as soon as possible. I, Sandra Joanne Glover was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada on September 2, 1943. Sandra Laing is about to become famous. [4] When her parents moved away from Piet Retief, the clandestine visits were no longer possible. The wheel has turned full circle. I had chosen not to be their sister and I had to lie on the bed I had made for myself, he said. Sandra pictured with her brown family. | Source: YouTube.com/Our Life. A few years ago I thumbed through a book which detailed Laings tumultuous life,When She Was White: The True Story of a Family Divided By Race. of these combinations will occur within such a large population is high. that benefits the victims. Find the best deals on More Pets Supplies from your favorite brands. Although reunited with her mother, she was never reconciled with her father and to this day, her two brothers refuse to see her. Im not trying to throw salt on Laings game, Im just not convinced the complete truth has been unearthed. Abraham and Sannie Laing with their kids | Sannie Laing with her daughter, Sandra Laing | Source: Youtube.com/Our Life. | Source: YouTube.com/Our Life. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. MPAA rating: PG-13 (for thematic material, some violence and sexuality). The tests they used to prove her fathers paternity could have been faulty. After all, look at their pictures. And what about proving her mothers maternity? [5] She was expelled and escorted home by two police officers. Her daughter, Elsie, remembers being surprised to see her mother standing at the school gate. As you can see Adriaan, . South Africans were segregated into four groups: whites, Asians/Indians, colored, and blacks. 'She told us she was coming to fetch us for good. Is it possible Sandras mother was getting love from a undeniably-black man on the side? In the principal's office, two khaki-uniformed officers were waiting. Find the best deals on HDTVs, UHD TVs, & 4KTVs from your favorite brands. Gradually, her relationship with Zwane soured, and to save her and her children's lives, Sandra ran away in 1979. [4] Her family treated her as white, the same as their sons Adriaan and Leon, and together they all attended the Dutch Reformed Church. He even forbade Sannie from visiting her and cut off all contact with Sandra. In other words, in a population of millions where mean non-White ancestry is ~5% a substantial number in absolute terms of individuals with discernible ancestry will exist. I suspect this is plausible because there was admixture as late as the 19th century, as opposed to2,000 years agoas for the Uyghurs. As a young girl she knew she looked different but her biggest problems began when she showed up to school. Ancestry kits could identify the proportion of non-European ancestry they have; one would . , who is 1/4 black. Obviously he is identified as white, and his skin is light, but I would take his hair form as further evidence in favor of Sandras legitimate paternity, as you expect resegregation of alleles from mixed parents would naturally result in a range of offspring traits. 'Everyone liked Petrus - even my father,' Sandra says. And through a quirk of genetics, ten-year-old Sandra was about to become another potent symbol of a nation built on race and prejudice. On the other hand, her fathers background was less well known. Sandra Laing with her three children. They were like my own people,' she says. Heres a photo of Sandra with her brother Adriaan. does not support or promote any kind of violence, self-harm, or abusive behavior. Net Worth in 2021. I had chosen not to be their sister and I had to lie on the bed I had made for myself.". By mixed and unmixed Im actually referring to a small subset of genes which code for physical appearance. We have two children Teresa Marie Laing, and Ian Ronald James Laing. We also encourage everyone to report any crime incident they witness as soon as possible. However, 9 years later, her brothers allegedly still refused to have anything to do with her as they believed she was the cause of their parents unhappiness. The apartheid ended in 1994, and since then, South Africa has come a long way in becoming welcoming and tolerant towards people of varying races and colors. She said she didn't have money, and I said: "Ma, it doesn't matter, as long as we are together."'. Sandra breaks down at her father's grave. Abraham and Sannie could not call upon such scientific evidence. 'You mustn't ask for any more money. A sense of well-being and family that once blighted her life became her pillars of strengths. Long before science learned to meddle with genes, there was Sandra Laing. Now 53, Sandra is the daughter of shopkeepers from the Eastern Transvaal (since renamed Mpumalanga). To order a copy (P&P free), call 0845 155 0720. She traced a cousin, Susanna, who told her that her father had died of throat cancer a year earlier. Find the best deals on Women's Jewelry from your favorite brands. She worried that history would repeat itself, but quickly made new friends among the all-white pupils. Sandra recalled: "My father told me I was white. She went on to suffer domestic violence, destitution and the death of one of her six children. As Afrikaners, they had been indoctrinated in the Boer belief that to be white was pure and that people of mixed race were unstable and less intelligent. 'The visit lasted only ten minutes. ', Petrus dropped off Sandra and Henry close to the shop. 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After ~100 generations the ancestry should be approximately equally distributed across the population, but far less so on the order of 5-15 generations. Adrift and bereft for her lost children, she fell into another relationship and had another child, Anthony. But her parents refused to acknowledge what was in front of them. Growing up in the rural town of Piet Retief, Sandra's parents, members of the racist Nationalist Party, also ran a grocery shop, and in the early years she was happy. The probably that any two of these Afrikaners will marry and have children is small, but, the probability thatsomeof these combinations will occur within such a large population is high. Documentary films have been made about Laing: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sandra_Laing&oldid=1135813511, This page was last edited on 27 January 2023, at 00:54. But two individuals who look white? 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