Getting Rooted to your African Ancestry

Tuesday, April 18, 2017, at approximately 12:10 PM, Ramunda Young, Co-Founder of MahoganyBooks officially “Got Rooted.” That’s not to say that Ramunda was not aware of her culture and identity as a Black woman descended from Africa. However, through a special DNA process mastered by the good folks at AfricanAncestry.com, Ramunda now has a special pride in being able to identify (within a 99.2% certainty) not just the country within the massive continent of Africa, Bioko Island (Otcho in the Bube language), but also the ethnic group, Bubi, of whom her maternal ancestral roots are descended.

As most of you know, African Americans bear a special type of weight when it comes to knowing who we are. There’s no need in me repeating the same narrative that you’ve heard over and over again. We founded an online bookstore with thousands of books for just that purpose. What I’m writing to relate today goes beyond the academic view. What I’m attempting to convey today is what this meant personally for Ramunda. As you can see in the video, Ramunda was definitely emotional about learning her connection to something beyond the slave ships, auction blocks, and cotton fields American schools denote as the beginning of Black folk. Now Ramunda, our daughter Mahogany, Ramunda’s family, Rossi, Renita, Roy, and Mama Lark, can all say I come from the tropical Bioko Island, a place that was first inhabited in the middle of the first millennium BC.

It’s a beautiful thing to “Get Rooted.” To learn your history and to connect with a part of yourself long dormant is a serene process. The benefits vary from person to person. For some, it’s a spiritual awakening that the anglo-centric theologies and mores have been unable to stir in some African Americans. For others, it’s all about culture, consciousness, and identity. Whatever or however it impacts you, the result is all the same. It’s one more step in becoming a self-actualized person, complete in mind, body, and soul.

We encourage everyone to do one thing today: Commit to completing the entire picture of YOU. It’s not something to do all at one time, but piece by piece. You can start by going to AfricanAncestry.com to learn the various ways you can find your ancestral roots. Or if you need more information to learn why it’s important, go to our “Get Rooted Book List” to select from the Consciousness list one of the many books to help you understand why Black Identity is a necessary component for self-actualization. If you’re at an advanced stage “we got books for you too.” Check out the culture and country books for deeper study.

As always, we welcome respectful debate, discussion, and comments. Please feel free to share your opinions, whether its books we should add to our list or a differing view on my article. Share it below.