Pope Leo

The White Passing Hall of Fame would like to recognize Pope Leo and his family for extraordinary achievements in the work of White Passing.

This man's family walked into Whiteness and never returned.

This is Joe and Louise.

In the 1910 New Orleans census they were identified as Black people.

Around 1912 they moved to Chicago and the 1920 census in Chicago shows them as White people.

They just moved up North and started saying, "Hey, we're White" and everybody believed them.

They grabbed their own little piece of White Privilege and kept it moving.

Shortly after moving to Chicago they had their daughter Mildred who would grow up to become "The Mother of the Pope."

That's his grandmother - she could practically be my grandmother.

So his grandparents were Black until they decided they weren't.

They said Hey, life will be easier, survival will be easier, so let's just flip on over.

You gotta do what you gotta do.

But Hey, can you say that they were wrong, that gaining White Privilege for their family would not have benefits down the line?

Because look: two generations later their grandson becomes Pope.

Do you think he becomes Pope if they know he's Black?

I don't think so.

VIDEO: The White Passing Hall of Fame G*O*A*T* Pope Leo