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I'll tell you what will surprise many of you. I am a darker than average AA with 6% Native American, 20% Euro, 2% Mediterranean and the rest Black. If you did not know me then you would likely think that I was closer to 90% IF you didn't see my hair which is unusually straight, but I keep my head shaved. My nose is rather small and tight as well, but other than that......... My roots Southwest Va. in the Appalachian mountains where there are very few pure Afro types, but everyone is STILL either Black or White.
Incidentally the Loving's story is out on Netflix. It is a documentary on what many consider the first real interracial marriage between a White man and a "Black" woman. What history doesn't tell you is that she is of Native American ancestry as well. I find this to be rather biased since it was VERY obvious and well known by the local law enforcement along with everyone who knew her.
In the case of the Lovings, I can see why history didn't mention any Native American ancestry. She was prohibited from marrying her husband because of her African ancestry. Also, many African Americans who claim to have Native American ancestry find upon genetic testing no Native American. And yes, people have told me they see the "Indian" in me. And there is no Native American in me (though I am 1% Indian/Pakistani).
As you have more open interracial marriages nationally as well as a renewed interest genealogy and dna testing, how people identify will charge (also we have population demographics changing because of immigration).
If you looked at the ethnic groups in my dna profile, there's no proof I was born in the US. I could be from any place that has a large number of Blacks (the Caribbean or Latin America).
In the case of the Lovings, I can see why history didn't mention any Native American ancestry. She was prohibited from marrying her husband because of her African ancestry. Also, many African Americans who claim to have Native American ancestry find upon genetic testing no Native American. And yes, people have told me they see the "Indian" in me. And there is no Native American in me (though I am 1% Indian/Pakistani).
As you have more open interracial marriages nationally as well as a renewed interest genealogy and dna testing, how people identify will charge (also we have population demographics changing because of immigration).
If you looked at the ethnic groups in my dna profile, there's no proof I was born in the US. I could be from any place that has a large number of Blacks (the Caribbean or Latin America).
Many documents & articles during their time explicitly state that the Mildred Loving had Native American ancestry. She had substantial European ancestry.
Always wondered what was my exact ancestry. I look black with noticeable European ancestry. Finally got the results and it matches up with what I thought.
Just wanted to mention that the bold below is VERY incorrect though I saw after confronted the poster disappeared from this thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by CorderoAries
Again, varies by region, time period, etc. For example, only 100 years ago, in Ohio, Obama would have been seen as WHITE man. They even put it in their code of law. That is what happened in Puerto Rico as well, where more than half the population identifies as White even though the African ancestry in many is obvious. Again, experiences vary by region and blanket statements tend to be innacurate as they hold up in some cases and not in others.
I am from Ohio and currently live here. My family was one of the first "black" families in the area and my great great great great grandparents on my mother's side (the one's who were in Ohio) were listed as "Mullatto" on the census for decades.
In regards to the OP, I don't think it is rare either for a black American. I am afraid of sending kits off to test my DNA due to me being paranoid about people "stealing" it (I know it is crazy but I have accepted that I am crazy about my genetic material being mapped out, though curiosity may get the best of me eventually). But I know that I have a large amount of European ancestry on both sides of my family and I would't be surprised to see that I was over 40 or 50% European even though I look stereotypically black, just brownskinned black like Queen Latifah. I have nappy hair and everything. Ethnicity isn't always about appearances.
.. I had thought we Boomers were the transitional generation from the racist apartheid we were born into into a post-racial generation, but the last six years have shown me that we Boomers are still the product of our apartheid childhood.
An interesting test will be to look at how the racial attitudes of late stage Gen Xers has changed as they aged. People do tend to get more conservative as they get older, as the attitudes of the Boomers, hippies as kids, now mainly center right.
As this age cohort moves into their late 30s it will be interesting to see what their views on race is. After all these were the white kids who were fascinated with urban black style in the early 90s. Yo MTV Raps catered to them.
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If you looked at the ethnic groups in my dna profile, there's no proof I was born in the US. I could be from any place that has a large number of Blacks (the Caribbean or Latin America).
Its a fallacy (perpetrated by BOTH AAs, and Caribbean blacks) that these are separate populations.
1. Up to 1/3 of the slaves brought into NYC and Charleston were transferred from the Caribbean.
2. There has long been immigration from the Caribbean, Crispus Attucks of the American War of Independence, being an example.
3. There is also the "luck of the draw". The DNA tests provide INDICATIONS of one's specific ancestry. It is entirely possible that a person might have ancestries which are different from the population at large, just by virtue of whom their TRACEABLE ancestors are. So even though relatively few slaves were brought from the Akan speaking regions (Ghana/SE Ivory Coast), or from the Bight of Benin (SW Nigeria/Benin/Togo) it is perfectly possible that an AA might show distinct ancestry from those areas.
If anyome is interested, FTDNA is allowing for free uploads of your 23andme and AncestryDNA raw data file. With the free upload, you can see your top 20 matches. If you want to see them all, you either have to get four more people to upload or pay $39.
Its a fallacy (perpetrated by BOTH AAs, and Caribbean blacks) that these are separate populations.
1. Up to 1/3 of the slaves brought into NYC and Charleston were transferred from the Caribbean.
2. There has long been immigration from the Caribbean, Crispus Attucks of the American War of Independence, being an example.
3. There is also the "luck of the draw". The DNA tests provide INDICATIONS of one's specific ancestry. It is entirely possible that a person might have ancestries which are different from the population at large, just by virtue of whom their TRACEABLE ancestors are. So even though relatively few slaves were brought from the Akan speaking regions (Ghana/SE Ivory Coast), or from the Bight of Benin (SW Nigeria/Benin/Togo) it is perfectly possible that an AA might show distinct ancestry from those areas.
What are you talking about little slaves were brought from Akan regions, many places in the Americas had Ivory Coast and Ghana Akan speak regions. The Jamaica , Barbados and especially the Guianas are a perfect example of this. There are still Maroon tribes in French Guiana and Suriname that exhibit nothing but Akan traits ,to a lesser degree in Jamaica too.
Many Akan influence has been left in America too but Akan residual cultural aspects remain through out the new world.
What are you talking about little slaves were brought from Akan regions, many places in the Americas had Ivory Coast and Ghana Akan speak regions. The Jamaica , Barbados and especially the Guianas are a perfect example of this. There are still Maroon tribes in French Guiana and Suriname that exhibit nothing but Akan traits ,to a lesser degree in Jamaica too.
Many Akan influence has been left in America too but Akan residual cultural aspects remain through out the new world.
The reference was to the USA. The vast majority of slaves from the Akan speaking regions were sent to the British and Dutch Caribbean colonies, with some also to the French Caribbean. Indeed Jamaica alone accounts for 1/3 of them. Indeed about 60% of the enslaved people sent to the British West Indian islands came from Igbo (the largest source) and Akan (usually the second largest source).
Slaves to the USA came mainly from the Upper Guinea regions (Liberia to Senegal), from south east Nigeria and the Cameroon, and from the Congo/Angola regions. Relatively few came from the Akan regions as US planters were afraid of them due to their reputation for rebelliousness.
There is a site called www.slavevoyages.org which has lots of data about the origin and destinations of slaves.
In addition the fact that certain traits might survive doesn't suggest that enslaved peoples from that region were dominant. It might be that those peoples were best able to preserve their culture, or that they were among the last enslaved peoples to arrive.
Indeed many assume that Cuban blacks are heavily Yoruba, because of the heavy influence of Santeria, which is based on Yoruba religions. It is however a fact that more enslaved peoples were taken from the Congo and from the south eastern regions of Nigeria, than from the Yoruba lands. Indeed almost as many people arrived from what is now Sierra Leone as from south west Nigeria. Yorubas were more successful in "hiding" their religion with Catholicism, so it survived. Indeed few Yorubas were sent to Trinidad, but yet the most powerful African influences on that island are Yoruba!
The reference was to the USA. The vast majority of slaves from the Akan speaking regions were sent to the British and Dutch Caribbean colonies, with some also to the French Caribbean. Indeed Jamaica alone accounts for 1/3 of them. Indeed about 60% of the enslaved people sent to the British West Indian islands came from Igbo (the largest source) and Akan (usually the second largest source).
Slaves to the USA came mainly from the Upper Guinea regions (Liberia to Senegal), from south east Nigeria and the Cameroon, and from the Congo/Angola regions. Relatively few came from the Akan regions as US planters were afraid of them due to their reputation for rebelliousness.
There is a site called www.slavevoyages.org which has lots of data about the origin and destinations of slaves.
In addition the fact that certain traits might survive doesn't suggest that enslaved peoples from that region were dominant. It might be that those peoples were best able to preserve their culture, or that they were among the last enslaved peoples to arrive.
Indeed many assume that Cuban blacks are heavily Yoruba, because of the heavy influence of Santeria, which is based on Yoruba religions. It is however a fact that more enslaved peoples were taken from the Congo and from the south eastern regions of Nigeria, than from the Yoruba lands. Indeed almost as many people arrived from what is now Sierra Leone as from south west Nigeria. Yorubas were more successful in "hiding" their religion with Catholicism, so it survived. Indeed few Yorubas were sent to Trinidad, but yet the most powerful African influences on that island are Yoruba!
I agree with above, but wanted to also mention that many slaves were transported from the Caribbean to America and so there is a chance that black Americans could be descendants of the Akan region o Africa as well.
This was actually a topic spoken about on an episode of the Finding Your Roots series on PBS as one of the black guests had native American roots when their DNA was reviewed that was similar to Carib or Arawak Indians and they felt that that guest was probably a descendant of a slave brought from the Caribbean to America.
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