DER Weekends: Detroit genealogist on the importance, emotional toll of researching African American ancestors
“Detroit Evening Report Weekends” spends time with the community members who make up Detroit’s rich culture and identity.
In honor of Juneteenth, Wayne State University hosted a series of lectures and a genealogy workshop focused on tracing African American family lineages beyond slavery.
The workshop was led by Dr. Carolyn Carter, a historian and professional genealogist. Carter says genealogy research is an emotional journey.
“You’re going to find things that you didn’t know, you’re going to make discoveries that you didn’t know, that are going to be emotional. And you have to be ready and open and prepared for that,” she said. “But I tell my students, assume all stories are false because you were not there, and so it’s your job to find the truth in that journey.”
On this episode of Detroit Evening Report Weekends, we listen to WDET reporter Bre’Anna Tinsley’s conversation with Carter about the process of tracing one’s ancestry and the difficulties of tracing the histories of African Americans.
Later, Tinsley joins Detroit Evening Report host Sascha Raiyn to discuss their own family histories.
Listen to the episode using the media player above.
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