Talk:Melungeon

message: The "A Typical Malungeon" (Calloway Collins) illustration is more of a caricature than a realistic depiction of a Melungeon.  IIRC, this was commissioned by Dromgoole and her perspective on the Melungeons is evidently not unbiased.  Additionally, the article doesn't alert the reader to this fact.
I suggest that the illlustration be removed from the article.  In the alternative, there could be additional content added elaborating on societal or systemic bias against Melungeons (e.g. in the media, as exemplified by Dromgoole's "contributions").  I'm not volunteering to do this, just saying that this would provide the needed context for this illustration. Fabrickator (talk) 05:07, 3 September 2023 (UTC)
replies: text: I agree with you; the illustration of Calloway Collins is a caricature and part of the Yellow Journalism of Dromgoole; the other issue with this picture with the Goins family picture is that this words is steeped in racism- the word itself is a caricature of a group of people. To include a picture of a family and not even know who they are or give credit to them or the source of the photo other then looking like a realistic depiction of a Melungeon is also not unbiased. The two pictures provided in this article together are definitely inappropriate; however the Calloway Collins depiction was titled "A Typical Melungeon" and was infamously circulated along with the descriptions of these families by Dromgoole. It makes it not wikipedia appropriate when someone has decided that Arch Goins' brother's family provides a "realistic depiction of a Melungeon" since this word is a racial slur at the end of the day. I propose the Goins family picture is deleted in favor of sticking to documented evidence of where "Melungeons" were written about in history with that descriptor- not based on someone's private family photos on wikipedia that were uploaded from the Melungeon Heritage Association but the original source is no where to be found since this is a private collection photo. I agree with the alternative- to provide education with an appropriate context of this illustration; and then I also propose to delete the Goins family photo- unless someone can provide a source for this photo. StephanieTree (talk) 14:53, 3 September 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  proposal to delete "A Typical Malungeon" sketch 

message: The article in its current form says "Their ancestors were likely brought to Virginia as indentured servants in the mid-17th century." This is quoted from a newspaper article in the Tampa Bay Times about a DNA study of Melungeon ancestry. An editor has rejected an effort to insert the word "White" before "ancestors", holding to exact quotation. I believe that the word "White" should be inserted, for two reasons. The source that is quoted is not a reliable source for details of American history, it is much more reliable about events in Tampa Bay. Secondly, I have found zero mentions of indentured servants from Africa (aside from some speculation regarding 20 Africans in 1619). Do other editors agree with my position that the cited source is not adequately reliable to claim that people from Africa were indentured servants in the era leading to the Melungeons? 00:56, 18 January 2024 (UTC)
replies: text: Hello! I should mention that the article you mention was not originally published in the Tampa Bay Times, rather, it was written by the Associated Press (an esteemed national news organization) and reprinted in the Tampa Bay Times. You can find the article republished elsewhere besides the Tampa Bay Times. Therefore, your point about the article's authority suffering because it was published in the Florida paper is entirely moot. That's really all I feel I can add to this conversation at this time, standing by my earlier edits. I will yield to whatever consensus is reached in the talk page by Mr. Unseth and other editors. 128.197.29.246 (talk) 17:26, 18 January 2024 (UTC)
thread_title:  Grammar ambiguity and "reliable sources"