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Black Is Not A Colour
Why black has been maligned down through the ages.
Black is the absence of light. Some consider white to be colour because white light comprises all hues on the visible light spectrum. Black is not considered to be a colour as black cannot be created from a mix of other colours as can grey or brown for example.
That leads to the question: Why is white “good” and why is black “bad”.
When I was a kid, a Saturday afternoon movie was a treat. The favourite movies for us boys were “cowboy and bad guy” movies. Of course, the good guys wore white and the bad guys invariably wore black. In movies involving knights in shining armour rescuing fair maidens, the knight was often a white knight and the bad knights wore black.
When a person is in a bad mood, they are in a “black mood”. No one is ever in a white mood. Black cats are considered bad news, especially if one crosses your path. If you were in a fight and received a fist in the eye, you had a ‘black” eye. Did something wrong? That was a “black mark”against your name. Police cars are black. The ‘paddy wagon” is called a Black Maria.
In science fiction, the bad guys are the dark forces. Which leads to the question: when did dark skinned people or “blacks” first be come to be stereotyped as “bad”. Is it because of the colour…
