Colors have remarkably strong and varied associations.
Yellow is associated with cowardice and formerly was used to describe Asian skin colors. White , for instance, is used to describe a wide range of pinkish skin tones, although certain nationalities and ethnicities with pinkish skin used to be excluded from that term. Adding to the political issues about skin color is the fact that in Western European cultures, at any rate white has long been the color of purity and goodness, while black has long been associated with evil. Though black can also refer to the color of a caucasian's face when they're angry. And it has positive connotations in financial circles, where it's better to be in the black than in the red.