When my niece was younger she was in a trolly being pushed around Aldi when she asked my mum “why is that ladies face so dark” my mum literally didn’t know what to say she was so took back by the question and the lady tapped on my mums holder and just said “don’t worry my son has asked why some people are so pale” my mums never forgotten that, I think that women’s words made my mum realise it wasn’t an awkward question it was an inquisitive one and i think it helped her speak about race a lot more openly in the future.

My grandmother explained the differences to me when I was very young. She told me to look at all of the birds flying around. Some were red, some blue, some brown, etc. She told me they were all birds, even though they were different colors. Told me that's how people are. They come in many colors but they're all people. That satisfied me and seemed fair to my young mind. It still does. 45 years later.

One of my 4 year old students sat next to me , placed her hand on my hand and massaged it gently. She smiled, looked into my eyes and said, "Miss S, what colour is your skin?". I replied, " what colour do you think my skin is?" My student replied, " brown, chocolate brown;and then she gave me a hug. (Out of the mouth of babes) What are you teaching your children? In my classroom I believe in not giving answers right away to children, but to ask them their views and answer accordingly .

When I hear speakers like this, I am filled with genuine hope for the future of our country. By the same token, the topic of race is exhausting. I truly wish this country could just embrace everyone (brown, peach, tan, pale, rich, poor, smart, slow, capable, incapable) already. How hard is it to respect your fellow person?

"When we talk openly with our children about race, we don't burden them, we free them."

When my sister Judi was little, other kids told her she couldn't be friends with her best friend Angela because Angela was black and Judi was white. Judi was furious. "They are wrong! Angela is brown and I am pink!!"

“We tell children that race is real but that race doesn’t matter and the opposite is actually true.” 👏🏼👏🏼 that’s when I knew this was going to be an exceptional talk

Having real, and age appropriate, conversations, is a lost art in general. Talking about real topics in an inquisitive non-judgemental conversation. Thanks for calling out that the goal is to get to post racism as opposed to post racial.

From one black man to another, thank you for giving this talk. I more progressive minded. I'm studying race relations and have lived in places such as rural Alabama, Berlin Germany and New York City. I've noticed that White people have became very recently over-censored in the mainstream media. Over censoring them has not improved race relations but actually worsened them. We need an open dialogue in the USA. I'm a proud black man, you can be a proud white man. We're not going to kill each other over it. Let's talk, maybe get to know each and figure out how our communities can peacefully coexist. and all be proud of ourselves as well as appreciative and respectful of others. I think the USA needs to bring back Archie Bunker and George Jefferson !

When people ask me my skin color I say "peach color." They look dumbfounded and they say "Don't you mean white?" And I say "No, if I'm white I'm dead."

"We tell children that race is real, but that race doesn't matter. And the opposite is actually true." These are truly wise words. Scientifically and factually accurate, yet so many people seem tripped by this.

Such a brave man 😊 One of my favourite Ted talks so far. You can tell that speaking in public comes not so easy to him, but he knows that the message he has to deliver is more important than his own discomfort.

“When we ignore differences, it diminishes us all” Amen!

Thanks for that intro TEDx I didnt need my ears anyway.

My grandfather came from Ghana to the UK after the 1st WW, married a white women and my family has been bi-racial for a long time. We were lucky no conversation was ever out of bounds about our colour and we had many discussions about dual consciousness. I have always been very proud of my dual heritage and confident in my own skin (no pun intended). I believe that talking about race in a positive and transparent way provides a safe environment for people to ask questions.

How boring would the world be if we all look the same, talked, and acted the same. We’re all human with different shades of color. That’s what makes the world so pretty. All the differences. A shorter version of my previous comment.

I am white, raised by black man, hard worker all his life 80 hours per week is normal. Good Christmas, birthdays, always there when I need him. USA has way to many stereotypes...

My friend discribed race to her daughter by saying, "sometimes people are different colors..." and that was it. Best description ever.

I appreciate his patience, love and understanding with his grandchildren; in their conversations and learning experiences together.

Understanding only comes from conversation. No matter how uncomfortable a conversation is, you can still learn something about someone you didn't know before.

I believe he said that he was gray because black and white make gray, not because he was actually confused. He wanted to incorporate black into his identity.

there are 3 pure races!!! foot races, horse races, and car races.

What a great speaker. Was engaged the whole time. What a gem to find.

We live in a predominately Anglo American area of the country so my children don't have much opportunity to be around different colors of people. 🙁 However, we had Thai neighbors that had a son a year older than my 4 yr old daughter that would pick on her and was just a stinker. One day, my neighbor and I were sitting on my front porch visiting while the kids played. I brought out snacks for my daughter to share and she didn't give anything to the neighbors son. I asked her why and she explained that "brown boys were mean and she wasn't going to share". This is not something she learned in our home because I tell your what, she unlearned that idea very quickly. I then asked her again why she didn't share with the neighbor boy. She then explained it was because he was being mean. Ok. That's a reason I can accept and make sense of. We talked about what was going on. We talked about forgiveness. We talked with the little boy about teasing and being kind to others. My daughter had never had an issue with skin color to this day. People are people. Color is beautiful but it doesn't change personal responsibility. I'm grateful for this Tedx. 💖

I’m white “Caucasian” whatever that means, When I was about 6 years old I asked my Irish mother “Why do I have these brown freckles all over my face.” Her answer” Because you are so beautiful God couldn’t decide which color you should be, so he sprinkled some of the best color he could find on you and that’s how you came to be!!! PERFECT

I always told my kids skin is just the "wrapping" we are born with that comes in all kinds of colors. Kids are born pure. Opinions they acquire are learned.

I grew up in Utah as a Mormon. As I grew, I would seek out friends who were different than the typical white Mormon girl and make friends with them. My friends were a Hopi Native American girl and a girl from Thailand that had a big Buddha in her house. One day in college, I made friends with a student from Somalia. He was awesome and we'd have great talks! Then one day I introduced my parents to my African friend. My mother asked me a very shocking question, "Why do your boyfriends keep getting darker and darker?" I vowed then and there to find out where those teachings had come from. After 50 years, I left the Mormon faith. I could no longer subscribe to an organization which taught discrimination, towards blacks, gays, and non-members of that religion/cult. I decided I'd raise my kids to accept all types of people and love them. Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." It's that simple...

As a child raised at the NM boys ranch I use to see a water color painting in the bathroom. It was a child sitting on a wood fence so well painted you could not tell what mix of color he was. The caption still sticks with me over 40 years later. “I know I’m somebody because God don’t make no junk.”

If we were all one race there would still be discrimination-- selfishness, greed, covetousness, violence are demons we must consciously battle.

I'm a very light skinned black person and I can recall asking questions like this all the time when I was a child. It was so overwhelming to me to the point I disregarded race going forward. Whether it's in my relationships, friendships, or self image, I refuse to make race a predominating issue in my life. 'Race" is everyone else's problem, but I refuse to make it mine.

My grandson asked me why Iam darker than his mum. I just answered God made us different colour outside but inside we all the same.

Thank you for the talk Anthony Peterson. What a loving & caring, understanding ,wise grandfather you are.

I love how the comedian Sam Adams said that he figured out, that his skin color is a shade called "Chocolate Indulgence" (after comparing between different painting-colors). I think that's a wonderful sense of humor!

Don't you think your grandkid was thinking "well, I'm part black and part white, so that's grey"?

'Race isn't real, but race does matter'. Nailed it right there. I'm gonna be quoting that a lot!

I love how he looked at the audience and kindly said “you can clap“. like damn that calmness and confidence 🙌

What was it Martin Luther King said so well: "It is not the color of the skin but rather the content of the heart". In one sentence we have racial bias wiped out. We need to see how to put it into practice. We will.

I'm a white grandfather of two beautiful mixed grand daughters. They've actually taught me a lot and the oldest isn't even 3 yet. Watching this video helped me on what to say and what not to say. When the question of why they look different then me comes up... Thank you very much, this helped ...

Well said. I see skin color it's a blessing from God that my eyes see the beauty and creativity He created. It must be heartbreaking for God to be watching us tear into each other as we are.

My son had never seen anyone with different skin color as we live in a predominantly white area. He was about 4 years old when we were at a doctors office and a African-American family was there waiting to see the doctor. I didn’t say anything to my son at all. I smiled at the children playing together. Made small talk with the parents. Later that evening, my son was talking about his day and he referred to the little boy he played with as ‘the boy with brown skin’ because he didn’t know his name. I was thrilled that he didn’t see the boy negatively. He never heard us talk about people by their skin color so he didn’t have any preconceived ideas. He enjoyed playing with that boy. That was all that mattered.

Aww I want this man to be MY Grandpa 😫 he seems so kind, gentle and intelligent.

When my daughter was very little, I picked her up from daycare and she was crying. I asked her why she was so sad. She said she wanted to be brown like her best friend.

This talk must be shared with everyone. Explains the concept of race devoid of any bias.

When I was 4 yrs old (1952) my mother and I went to see our house under construction. She cautioned me ahead of time, Don't comment about the "colored men" working on the roof when we get there. I thought to myself, "Colored People," oh boy , that sounds wonderful,and I started imagining my crayon 8 color box. When we got there I was looking everywhere for the "colored" people, I thought, these people look just like my dad (Sicilian,Jewish). I was so disappointed, and thought, boy, did Mom ever get it wrong.

From a Caucasian grandmother with mixed race grandchildren thank you very much.

How many are watching this in 2020?

This man was very well-spoken and this comment section given me hope. Such a beautiful thing to see the unity here. Stay blessed, y'all.

I grew up in a very culturally diverse environment. What we as kids learned was to really enjoy and embrace those cultural differences. It was wonderful. I wish we still shared that idea, because I value it very highly.

When my first son asked me why people were different colors, I told him because God wanted the world to be beautiful. I asked him to look outside and tell me all the colors he saw. Once he did, I asked what it would be like if everything outside was green. He said that it would be boring. And, there’s your answer.

When I worked with an autistic teenager, one day he blurted out “Your skin is brown” with much enthusiasm.

Acceptance of one’s own reality is very important . I remember asking my teacher which crayon to use in class when coloring an art assignment. White didn’t match my skin nor did any other in my crayon box. She told me I could use the peach crayon. Grey/gray certainly wouldn’t have been a choice. Embrace the truth and love yourself. Accept where you came from and make wise choices to get you where you want to be. We’re all a part of the human race. Wouldn’t it be boring if we’re all looked exactly the same! It’s okay to love who you are. My skin tans easily so if I spend lots of time in the sun sometimes I can look a little brown too. It’s okay. That’s reality. Love God and love people. Keep it real. 😢👍🏼🧐

Thank you for this! How is anyone supposed to overcome their unearned thoughts of others if we can’t talk about it? “Sit down and shut up and never question what I’m telling you” isn’t learning, it is indoctrination. I am meaning this to apply to more than just race.

Im from sweden and Im 'white'. When I watched tv, theres a lot of american shows and what not. One day, I asked my mom why Mr. Moseby from Zach and Cody was 'black'. Without hesitation she told me "he is better adapted to the sun and hot weather." THAT IS LITERALLY WHAT SKIN COLOUR IS. I HAVE KNOWN THIS SINCE I WAS 6. and I thought it made sense, because it does. Generally, the closer to the equator (idk if thats not the name of it in english-), the darker your skin gets bc its hotter at that point of the world. The closer you get to the North and south, the colder it gets. Which means theres less sunlight so people have lighter skin to be able to gather as much sunlight as possible. It has nOTHING to do with your brain or muscles or anything we are the same people we are all just humans who are better or worse adapted to the sun. Thank you.

The solution has been simple and clear for a very long team. Treat people equally and as individuals. Otherwise you're stereotyping people into groups. And that's the problem to begin with.

This man is amazing!!! He wrote my resume for me and I got to speak briefly with him on the phone... He is so genuine...

Over and over I am so glad for the way I was raised. Even though I was teased for discussing race, playing with dolls of all colors, trying to explain melanin to my friends in exasperation, it was worth it in the end to have been told the truth. I feel so thankful for this talk, and strangely validated. Not because I have nothing to learn, I have lifetime and more to learn. But because we are finally talking about difference. Once we lose difference we lose learning, and just become a mass of the same.

wow when he said there are not virtues, vices, values etc connected to skin color 👏🏻👏🏽👏🏿 a man

"When we talk openly about race with our children, we don't burden them. We free them." Great stuff, Tony!

This was fantastic because he not only informs, but equips us for the change our society needs. 🙏🏼🌿

Born in 1965 & 56 years old...I grew up in a major city where schools were segregated and I didn't even know it! Around 1976 & 11 years old, my parents moved our family to a smaller town, to a nicer house, and I thought that was the reason. 1979 & 14 years old, I see brown skinned people, live & in person, aside from books, for the first time in my life! I made friends with 2 kids my age & discover a whole new life style while doing so. It's at this time in my life that I discovered racism, not because of me, because of other people judging me for my new friends! I didn't care, I liked my new friends, but, I fought a few battles. Sometime before graduating high school in 1983 at 18 years old, I found out the real reason for our move to the small town with a nicer house, it was the desegregation of schools in the major city and one parent's views on that subject, that made me uncomfortable, to say the least. 1983 & 18 years old, graduate high school and immediately getting my freedom and run full throttle into adulthood! Racism is apparently fluid here and there, but, I watch it dissipate exponentially through the 80s and into the 90s with near irrelevance in the early 2000s! Higher learning, evolution, understanding, empathy, &, even laws had people elevated & continuing to further elevate from the lunacy of racism. I firmly believe that propaganda, mainstream media and unseen forces has pushed us backwards for no real apparent or threatening reason! A wise man once said, "there's only one race, the human race".

Reminds me of when a preschooler asked me why my son and I are different colors ( He was adopted and is browner.) I explained it to him briefly and added "Isn't he handsome! " but his expression remained wrinkled, and he said "But did you paint him?"!

I come from a multiracial, multicultural family and I could listen to you all day💗

"There is no culture in color." Incredibly freeing...

Being mixed I am so hurt by all the hurt and separation. People are going to live and die in their hate for themselves and each other.

Can’t wait to teach my children that. Thanks for giving me the rights words. “Race isn’t real, but it does matter.”

This man seems quite nervous and is stuttering a lot...I found it made him more relatable and likeable. Great talk, I really enjoyed it.

I love this Ted talk .... 2020 needs to hear this again

Wow I study race all the time and he had approaches here I never heard of before.

Wow. This Ted talk was hands down one of the best I've ever seen. So powerful, intelligent, honest, insightful.

I think we need to listen to each other, stay calm and patient and really listen. We can all win together if we stop being so combative.

I don’t see races, but I do celebrate cultures ... I thank God everyday for different cultures, cuz even though I love southern cooking, there are days I’m feening for sushi, or fajitas, or Kung pao, or gyros; and I also love different cultural looks and products, such as Navajo blankets, Spanish leather, Japanese silks, Chinese herbs, Indian saris, etc. Lord, the world would be so boring without so many choices 😉😁

This is one of the greatest TED Talks I've ever seen. Spoken so eloquently, so openly and truthful to the cause. I saved this and you should too. I just hope it is available for viewing when my children are old enough to understand these things. I studied anthropology in college and it is great to say the actual color of one's skin, and let your children ask the questions, giving them truthful unbias and honest answers. This is one of the things in life that no parent is perfect at explaining, so it's so helpful to have this man tell us how he feels, and what children in his life have taught him about humanity and being human. ❤️

On another note, imagine how asians feel when they're referred to as "yellow" lol. When they range from pale with pink undertones to super tanned (phillipinos).

Never gave a damn what color anyone's skin is or what country they came from. All depends on how you act

Absolutely spot on, thank you for having the courage to talk about actual science and reality . Why it’s not common knowledge, public school is supposed to teach basic biological science. ( Never mind families who may or may not have learned about it. )

What a WONDERFUL and freeing talk from Nashville, TN

Well done Tony. Growing up in Hawaii did give us a different and privileged perspective on race and skin color. Yet even being a local and of Hawaiian blood I was the minority and discriminated against because of my skin color and had to fight for my place in the pecking order. My brother Keoki felt he was born the wrong color which created issues in his life. Morgan Freeman said in an interview with Mike Wallace: WALLACE: How are we going to get rid of racism until ...? FREEMAN: Stop talking about it. I'm going to stop calling you a white man. And I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man. I know you as Mike Wallace. You know me as Morgan Freeman. You're not going to say, "I know this white guy named Mike Wallace." Hear what I'm saying? Thank God for diversity! What is your color? The color of skin.

I'm an archaeologist, but my focus throughout my undergrad was in biological anthropology. There's a reason that anthropologists are pretty much unanimous in saying that race is a social construct and that it has no real biological basis. I've gotten into arguments online about this, but here's how I see it: people create models in order to understand the world, similar to how we create maps in order to get a sense of what a geographical area looks like. But as Alfred Korzybski said, "the map is not the territory". All models are simplifications of reality, and this is not necessarily a bad thing; you'll never get a model that describes a phenomenon at every level of detail. We judge a model based on how useful it is. Race is a model, just like anything else. The question is, is it a _useful_ model? I'd argue it isn't (at least, not as a biological model; sociologists would probably find it more useful, though). Yes, there are genetic differences between individuals, but race does not correlate well with genes. To put this in perspective, Africa has the most genetic diversity of any continent; there is more diversity within the continent than there is _between_ continents, which means, as a white guy of Scandinavian and British descent, I am more closely related, genetically, to some Africans than they are to _other_ Africans. If you want to understand genetic diversity in humans, focusing on race will lead you astray.

"We tell children that race is real, and race doesn't matter, but the opposite is true."

7 years later. 2021, mid COVID pandemic. I see love and truth. Great talk on racism, color, identity and honesty.

Thank you so much for this talk, Tony! As a yellow (brown) grandmother with a two-year-old white (pinkish) grandchild, I was really inspired by your insights and great love. Bless you!

people should not be judged by the color of their skin...but by the color of their hearts

I come from a mixed back ground and this was well said... ONELOVE

Embrace the differences that make us unique.

When I was a young kid I used to refer to the cream colour pencil as 'skin' colour. I had a friend correct me saying 'but that's not my skin colour.' I made sure to never use that term again. I always thought it weird and frustrating that so many 'white people' wanted to have more tanned skin yet looked down on those who were dark skinned.

The real important question should not be the one relating to appearance but the one relating to behaviour : am I a good person, am I honest and do I treat others well ?

This was inspiring. What you have stated is what should be taught.

He is a thoughtful guy and poses interesting questions. No doubt these can be complicated conversations to have with children. I’d be interested to see the results of a similar survey of what non-white kids have learnt about race.

This guy does a great job (he also had some solid Dad jokes)

I love how he explained it - it isn’t real, but it does matter. This is such an excellent piece that really should be in classes.

damn I've had a lot of cutting conversations about race, but it's never been as simple as, "there is no physical difference attributed to melanin". Well played sir, well played. I hope people listen

"'Race is not real, but race does matter."' Simply worded, but important regardless.

I'm Native American and mixed White. My husband is mixed white. We have one very brown daughter and one very pale daughter. "Race" has often been a discussion in our household but in a lighthearted and matter-of-fact way. I hope others can feel the freedom to be as relaxed about "race" as we are about eye colour.

I always told my kids: we all bleed red, we all breathe air, we all have a soul. We are all the same. However, what sets you apart is your character. Words and actions can bring us together or separate us. So, just be a good human.

Children should be allowed to ask, speak and never wonder . Open discussion are good . I will always speak to my children and teach them there’s no better way to learn why they want to know , and how to be different to build a better future

I have things that make me, me. My love for singing, my KZfaq feed, my favorite shoes, my brown eyes, my brown skin. People sometimes aren't nice to me but are nice to other strangers because my skin looks one way and their skin looks another. My great grandfather was treated very badly because he didn't look like the people in charge of the country. Nowadays some people are nice and some people aren't. There were some nice boys recently who were killed just because they were a darker brown. Just because a group of people share the same skin color doesn't mean they share the same beliefs. Just because we're the same color doesn't mean we think the same about different things or feel the same about different things. Be kind to others. Don't make assumptions about anyone. Let people tell you about themselves and listen when they do. If they don't want to talk about their skin color then don't ask them, but you can say "You are beautiful."

When I was a kid my grandma told me the reason there r different skin colors was god got board with one color. This lead to many more questions such as why don’t I see purple people. Yes purple is one of my favorite colors. I remember the talk today. It took place over 45 yrs ago.

Thank you so much.. This needs to be spoken of over and over.....................

Within every family, if we teach our children to be respectful, to be polite, to dress decently, to love God.. hate can be turned to love for one another, irrespective of skin colour

I have friends from Ethiopia and the more years they've been here the light or brown they get because their melatonin is decreasing. Now this is what I have always assumed I'm going to check the facts after watching this! I believe all men came from Adam and Eve so we are all from the same parents. Different environment made the Melatonin different in our skin and other Environmental differences. This was a great lecture. Hope I hear more like it!