How to find Your Cultural Anchor

​So, you’re not sure who your tribe is since your ancestral line isn’t known. 

What sorts of gods did your foremothers and forefathers worship, their regular diets and associated diseases. 

I took a heritage DNA test half a year ago and learned that I have heritage from Western Africa, Eastern Africa and MENA(Middle East North Africa). Since my dad is from Jamaica and the West African heritage comes from him, and since the DNA results didn’t show the Caribbean islands, I can safely surmise that the DNA tests go back to a time before the transatlantic slave trade or the dividing of Africa for colonization.

For those of you who are descendants of enslaved West Africans, like myself, a cultural anchor can be found through exploring the heritage you discover through DNA ancestry tests. 

The dilemma there comes when you consider how the tribes that make up the current nation states were also the same warring tribes that sold your ancestors into slavery. 

NOTE: You should always be mindful of going through the stages of grief when searching for your cultural anchor points. 

Samri Bliss (8/30/2023)