Why the Negro Is Black
An African American origin tale explaining skin color, collected by Joel Chandler Harris. According to Uncle Remus, in the beginning, all people were the same color. The Lord was making people and set them out to bake in the sun, like bread. He planned to bake them different shades—some light, some dark, some in between. The first batch was put in the oven, but the Lord became busy with other matters and left them too long. When he took them out, they were burnt quite black. That was the Negro. The second batch, watched more carefully, came out just right—a nice golden brown. That was the Indi