Black or white

On the news tonight they talked about how Michael Jackson had always wanted to be white, a stance he "made clear" in his song, Black or white, with the lyrics: "I'm not gonna spend my life bein' a colour."

What? What? Did you miss the rest of the song?

It don't matter if you're black or white...
If you're thinkin' about my baby, it don't matter if you're black or white
If you're thinkin' of bein' my baby, it don't matter if you're black or white
If you're thinkin' of bein' my brother, it don't matter if you're black or white.

Point being (I assumed), that it don't matter if you're black or white.

I'd always interpreted "not gonna spend my life bein' a colour" as not wanting to spend your life being defined by your colour.

As far as him turning white: vitiligo. Genuine disease. Genuinely had it. Tends to affect mainly non-Europeans. Causes loss of skin pigmentation.

My point? Get over the colour of his skin, people. It don't matter.