When I hear the question "What is Africa to you?" I immediately begin to think of my roots as well as my peers. As an individual who is African American, I do not know much about my roots besides the fact that I am from the South, where I consider my culture to be a perfect plate of home cooked soul food with seasoning in every bite, or the twang in my voice when I pronounce words such as "Mild". It was not until I moved to Maryland that I started to question my true roots and heritage. Many of the friends I met have told me they are from places like Nigeria and Liberia, and even have shared their cultural foods with me. I did not know there was more layers to my heritage until then, and it made me wonder why exactly do I not know where I am truly from besides Texas? Where do I originate from? And it bothered me that I did not know, I questioned myself and my validity as a person of color. Until I learned about the black diaspora, which is the reason why I truly do not know. Though I know there are ways I can find out such as DNA tests, I wish to know in a way that connects me more to where I am from. I always have wanted to know what part of Africa I really come from, and learn about it before maybe visiting if I wish to do so. So, when I think of Africa or am asked about it, I immediately think of my lost heritage, the Southern culture that I have, who I am, and who I really could be. Another connection I can bring in is the recent lesson in class. I was tasked with exploring the Trans-Atlantic slave trade database, in which I found a lot of cool tools within it. I found the map and timeline features where I can see by year how many slaves disembarked, and the maps with arrows that show the exact regions they were taken to. Included in the post is a picture of the posters my group created in which we summarize what the database is and features that it includes. The database is a great tool for anyone who is interested in beginning to learn about the black diaspora as a whole and may be interested in using it to guide them in research about where they may come from. To me, Africa is more than just a continent. Africa is where I originated from, and although I do not know exactly where in African from, I still am connected to it.
Africa is a strong and wealthy continent, as your blog demonstrated. Africa has produced many outstanding individuals, including those who are bright and creative.
I really enjoyed your blog I felt the connection to not knowing much about your roots especially being around friends and peers who know their roots and the struggle and embarrassment of not knowing where your family is from. I also agree that using DNA test is a great way to find out where your family originates however, a huge part of slavery was getting rid of all evidence of where slaves came from exactly so I wonder how accurate it is to find where your organs are from.