Idon't know for certain,but i don't think the persians were racist people. There is no need to spout racism on this message board. I understand you when you say that many of the claims on this web site are bogus or need to be backed up with facts. You have to understand that African history has been suprssed formthe general masses and also under appreciated by classcists,and thus create web sites like these. I myself am in the process of writting a book on Africa,and i have through reserch that willshut up both the skeptics and cynics.
I have no need to fabricate history that is not mine,and I don't want to claim other people's history because this is no better than the white surpemist who tried to elminate egypt from africa and even to the extreme tried to say the nubians were white people. People actually still believe this in many circles. You will get anthropologist like cloring brace who believes that somalis are tropically adapted white people.
You will get fanatics form the 18th century who believed that fulani were white people,and many others from this time period.
I live in egypt and i am both algerian and egyptain,and proud of my heritage.
I might also remind you that persians also used nubian bow men that you can see in perapolis,and were not racist. I am not sure if any nubians married persians,or persians marrying nubians,but i do know when the persians wars were going on that nubian bowmen were used and helped xerxes.
You might recall the little story in herdootus where he tries to fool the ethiopians king,but the nubian aka ethiopian king is sucessful at resisting his forces.
Persians at times did treat the egyptains quite cruel especially under cambyses,but i don't think this was based on race.
Darius,cambyeses also adopted pharonic garb. Mani the persian phophet ranked the africna civlization of aksum as one of the greatest in the world.
Africans have not always been viewed in a racist light as in the modern day soceity.
Read leo africanus journey through timbuktu where the talks about the africans being highly skilled people. Read ibn battua which caleld the africna city kilwa the msot beautiful in the world.
Even early europeans exploers in africa like mugo park,heinrcih barth was the first european to set foot in kano a noethern nigerian city talkeds about the spacious houses that were multi storied,irrigation,harvesting of crops such as cotton,and city wall fortifications.
Olfriet dapper who took accounts of travclers to benin city in southern nigeria described an african quite different form the one in joseph conrad's heart of darkness,and much of this history has been ignored.
muslim students from africa went to arab univerities in egypt,fez,and even muslim spain.
I recoomend you read basil davidson,marq devillers which wrote a book called into africa,which shatters much streotypes about savage africans that was created by racists.
there is many archeologicalsites below the sahara that go uninvestigated.
ps
doyou have any good books on elam