It isn’t any kind of myth. My grandfather was born in 1901 and he remembered when he started to be approached by banks for business loans. It was in the late thirties. He was smart enough to know that he only started being treated white by some and only some as a result of the increased population of black folk around here. Up until then he was regularly called and treated like he was black. It didn’t prevent him from hating black folks though. After he he may have been poor and his kids may have had trouble with hunger but at least he wasn’t a n*****r. A quote by more than one of his generation by the way. We are talking about the deep south. I remember the rude old money biddy next door to us when I was growing up called me a tater tot until her dying day. In case you don’t know tater tot is a racist thing to call someone. So tell yourself its a myth but don’t expect anyone with family that remembers their treatment to agree.