The black sisters that were declared white

One of the most strange episodes in the history of Venezuela happened in Caracas at the end of the xviii century. At that time, the access to wheat flour was very difficult. This, of course, made confectionery very expensive. It was under those conditions that the Bejarano sisters, Magdalena, Eduvigis, and Belén came with the amazing idea of substituting the flour with mashed banana. They came up with the famous and succulent Bejarana cake, that it is still eaten to this day in Venezuela. The commercial success of that cake was so immense, that the three sisters became significantly wealthy. They had everything they could dream about, health, beauty, wealth and freedom. There was only one problem, they were black.

Racism was so prevalent at that time, that they couldn't enjoy their fortune since they weren't accepted in the high society. But then, on June 3, 1.793, the Spanish Crown promulgated a law that basically allowed people to buy their whiteness. The Bejarano sisters were happy, for 1.500 pesos each they bought not only their whiteness but their right to be called by the title of "Doña". Soon came a royal edict that said that the Bejarano sisters were white, but that living in the tropic, the inclement sun has given their skin a dark color. White people weren't happy, they demanded the abolition of such law. They were unsuccessful in their attempt but their pressure wasn't totally in vain.

In one of the most shameful pages of the Spaniard jurisprudence, the King proclaimed an edict where it said literally that "...although the Bejarano sisters are white, the Bejarano sisters are not white".