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DNA and Racism
Have you seen the recent commercials that promote people having DNA tests? They show a man who is shocked to find out he should be dancing in kilts instead of lederhosen. And there is the woman who clearly has an American accent who says when she travels, people ask where she is from—and she assumes they are asking about her cellular history. Several people report that they now feel “complete,” knowing their personal DNA. It’s fascinating to see how people respond to their results.
One teacher at West Chester University in Pennsylvania has identified a creative and educational way to use DNA tests: to explore questions about racism. Her name is Anita Foeman; she was doing consulting work in the area of race mediation and was using DNA testing as one tool. Her goal, rather than causing confrontation, was to help people recognize their biases and create an environment where people could speak about race in a constructive and positive way. She brought her experiences into the university environment.
Overall, the student response has been enthusiastic.
‘Some people have never had a happy conversation about race,’ Foeman said. But in her class at West Chester University, there was laughter. Eagerness. And easy connections where there might have been chasms. ‘Our differences are fascinating,’ she said.
At a time when tensions over race and politics are so raw, the stakes, Foeman said, seem particularly high. Her students have been talking all fall about riots, building walls, terrorist attacks, immigration, the election. ‘You can feel it buzzing around the halls like electricity,’ Foeman said.
To introduce the process, Dr. Foeman has people complete a short survey about their ancestry. Then they spit into a vial and the vials are sent for testing. Weeks later they get an email with the results of their “ethnic make-up, a color coded map of their past.”
Students have reacted in amusing and thoughtful ways:
‘When I opened my results, the first thing that greeted me was 6 percent African,’ said a student with very pale skin in the back of the classroom, smacking herself in the forehead, mouth open wide, to re-create her reaction the night before: ‘Whaaaaat?’
‘I guess I shouldn’t be that surprised,’ she added. ‘I know a lot of African-American people have some white DNA, so I shouldn’t be surprised there’s some African in me.’
A student with bright-red hair sent her mother an image of her results, telling her, ‘We’re not Irish at all.’ Her first response was: ‘You must have the wrong data.’ And then: ‘Don’t tell your grandfather. It might kill him.’
There were also students who refused to be tested or denied the results:
Foeman has seen people drop out of the project after getting their results, including three people who identified as African-American who were upset to learn how much European ancestry they had. Some people refuse to take the test. A woman of Chinese descent told Foeman: ‘It’s okay for you – you already know you’re mixed up. I don’t want to find out I’m not pure.’
One of the most valuable aspects of this process is that the results create an opportunity to talk about race in a non-threatening, educational and intimate way:
In class, there were a few quiet moments. But mostly people were rushing to talk – to tell about the great-grandfather who was a Portuguese pirate, the grandfather who was a Black Panther, the grandmother who doesn’t like black people, the great-grandmother whose skin is so much lighter than her siblings’ and everyone will be very angry if anyone asks why that is. The grandmother who, on her deathbed at 99, insisted that the family’s roots went back to William the Conqueror, although no one thought the family was of British descent. (That student’s test results indicated they were, in fact, British. ‘Even up to the end, you gave Grandma no respect!’ Foeman teased.)
Emma Krentler, who has pale skin and brown hair, told the class she knew of Italian and German ancestors and expected some kind of a split between the two. Instead, she found a much more intricate tapestry: 2 percent North African, 13 percent West Asian, 2 percent Jewish. And when she saw Middle Eastern, ‘I was like, What? What?’ It was complete and utter surprise.”
‘Who are these people?!’ Foeman laughed with her.
Students are now volunteering for testing campus-wide.
We are in a period of history where many of us want to identify constructive, meaningful and intimate ways to talk about race. We can initiate conversations, but too often participants become upset, defensive, and angry. Discussions might be superficial because they are intellectual, theoretical and uneasy, not exploring the most fundamental aspects of our beliefs about race and culture. I support any method that can bridge the gaps that seem to be increasing over racial differences. If DNA testing is one step that can span those conflicts, creating an environment of curiosity, sincerity, and learning, then I think it could be a great tool for developing and deepening relationships in a society that is ripe for healing.
Published in Education
Fascinating, R. Thank you for expanding the discussion in such an interesting way!
I agree. I think a lot of people are just curious. It occurs to me that in this world, many people feel estranged, without connections to much of anything. It might be meaningful to find a connection to their history, to a people or to a land. It doesn’t say much about who they are as a human being contributing to their universe, but it might be another way to color in the picture.
Yes. It was the black kids in a particular class who were upset that they had “so much white” in their DNA. I’m glad they were upset; maybe it will shake loose some misconceptions.
Something I encountered years ago explains some of this among blacks.
There is a deeply ingrained belief, especially among liberals, that any European heritage in black populations has to have been due to rape from the time of slavery, and that any and all interracial children must have been due to rape. The notion that there were consensual marriages in colonial and early-American times is utterly foreign to them.
This shows a couple of rather disturbing lines of thought:
That is very disturbing, skip. Important ideas to offer into this discussion. Thank you.
How reliable are “ethnic” DNA tests? An allele may be more prevalent in one form in a given population, but that does not make its presence in another population a sign of cross breeding, just of variant forms of the gene.
Added 8 minutes later, a quick search during a patient break shows that ancestry.com gives no science (they describe the method but do not validate how it tells ethnicity) on their website to support their DNA claims, while several articles quote real scientists and real science bodies as cautioning against accepting these results.
Given the enormous number of alleles in the human genome, all of us must carry some DNA that would typically be from “other races”. I remain quite skeptical.
https://www.ancestry.com/dna/?hl=One+simple+DNA+test.+A+world+of+discoveries.&s_kwcid=genetic+dna+testing&gclid=CJC-ptaptdECFYRmfgod9JYBJQ&o_xid=55307&o_lid=55307&o_sch=Paid+Search+Non+Brand
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-genetic-testing-can-tell-you-about-race-or-ancestry-2015-11
http://www.livescience.com/7384-genetic-ancestry-tests-hype-scientists.html
Yes I can see for medical purposes a tremendous value, but I have concerns about mailing in DNA to anyone (other than medical) through the mail just to find out your history. I think there are other ways to do it and like some stories have indicated, the results can be skewed. It’s like mailing your fingerprints and waiting for your palm reading. I love the concept though – I would love to do the Ancestry thing through conservative channels.
I worked with a lovely transplant nephrologist about a decade ago, and our hospital saw the genetic mix up close and personal. He and his family were from Puerto Rico “as long as anyone could remember.” He was diagnosed with hematological cancer (I can’t remember which leukemia…or maybe lymphoma…). Anyway, as part of his treatment he needed a bone marrow transplant and none of his family was a close enough match. His genetic testing indicated that he has a significant percentage of Mediterranean in him, which in conjunction with his Hispanic heritage complicated the process of finding a donor. (The rest of the story ends sadly and will not build up your faith in humanity, so I’ll stop there).
But, suffice it to say, I always think of him when I see those commercials.
As for me, low-rent English/Scotch/Irish with some German is what they tell me. Also, supposedly my great grandmother was 100% Cherokee. But who knows?
Actually, yes. It’s rather challenging, though — it takes most people 75 years or so to complete…. There are a few slackers who spend over a hundred years on it, if you can believe it. (-:
So much for the content of their character.
Wise words to heed. Thank you.
Who said anything about judging people on the basis of their ancestral history? Yes, there are extreme leftists and some on the extreme right who do this, but they will do it with or without DNA tests. There are many millions of more people who are just mildly curious to learn something about their ancestry; it doesn’t mean that we think ancestry is the only thing that matters, or even that it really matters at all: it’s just interesting to learn about.
In the study referred to in the op, the people who were obviously racist refused to take the test, not because they believed in character, but because they were afraid of what the test might reveal. I do not understand how taking one of these tests means that someone doesn’t care about character.
There seems to be some very all or nothing thinking going on here; it’s as if some think that DNA either doesn’t matter at all, or it’s the only thing that matters; most people probably don’t ascribe to either view. There are some who tell us that because great evil has been perpetrated in the name of nationalism, that all forms of nationalism must cease; a similar line of thought seems to exist on this thread: some seem to be saying that because great evil has been perpetrated in the name of genetics, we must therefore pretend that genetics simply do not exist. Those who think that DNA and nationality are the most important things are definitely evil, but we shouldn’t throw the baby our with the bath water. It’s human nature to be curious about where one’s ancestors came form, and that curiosity is probably amplified in a place like America, where people’s ancestral history is often unknown or unclear. If we really believe that all men are created equal-and I suspect that most Americans do believe that all men are created equal, then we have nothing to fear from ancestry DNA :)
I don’t know if that’s what the commenter meant either. I agree with you, Judithann. Although I suspect that there are many people who would have no idea of what “content of one’s character” means. We live in a time when people focus on dressing in ways that get attention, showing off their sexuality, and saying what they think others want to hear. Dennis Prager used to refer to young people who, when asked what they wanted to be, they said “famous.” But I think the people responding to this OP, for the most part were curious for medical reasons, or just plain curious. I know almost nothing about my family tree before my parents, and I appreciate people who try to create their family tree. I think this is just another piece to that puzzle.
It is not like that is a new thing. When I was a teenager, while on a trip I sent postcards to a friend closed with “Keep this. I might be famous some day.” Seventy years before that a teenaged Winston Churchill plotted out a career with the intention of making sure he would become famous. As did Gaius Julius Caesar two thousand years before Churchill.
I think wanting to be famous is in the DNA of male teenagers. Quite literally. Famous men get their pick of the desirable mates. You do not need to understand that on a conscious level (I did not as a teenager), it is imprinted in males through natural selection.
Seawriter
And they still think men and women are the same–ha!!
Wait a sec–I’ve been thinking about that comment, Seawriter. I’d like to hear from the other guys still following the thread–did y’all want to be famous as teen-agers? Do you still?
What a great teacher. I’ve wanted to have one of those DNA tests myself, but I want to make sure I do one I trust. Great post Susan, as usual.
I can help you with that as I’m a pretty good amateur genealogist. I have 6,000 people in my own family, and have researched numerous family lines for friends and other distant cousin-in-laws.
I did not crave fame. I always had grander ambitions. Still do.
Count me as among the curious ones. I’ve always wanted to know my maternal ancestry. But I’m not going to do the testing. Who knows where my DNA will end up? It might end up in the hand of big government.
I understand your concern, kind of, but even if our DNA does end up in the government’s possession, what could they do with it? Am I just lacking imagination here?
It’s probably too late for me anyway; I have already swabbed my cheek to join the bone marrow donation registry. They told me that I have a very rare tissue type? Whatever it is that they are measuring , my type is rare. Which means I am extremely unlikely to ever be called upon as a donor, but if I do turn out to be a match for someone, I may well be the only one. It also probably means that if I ever need a donor, I may well be out of luck. Oh, Well. :) When they told me this, they asked me if I would be interested in more information about my DNA, and I said that I would be, but none was ever forthcoming, at least not so far.
I would have been satisfied with world domination. How about you?
I’ve had mine swabbed too to test my susceptibility to macular degeneration. But I was told that it would only be used for that particular database and that it was anonymous. Who knows.
I am not an organ donor, because I want that decision made by my family, not by some over eager ER doctor who sees a sticker on my license. So, I really am curious about what the government could do with information about our DNA: Like I said, I am probably just severely lacking in imagination :)
I didn’t know there was a DNA test for that. My father had macular degeneration, but my opthamologist says he doesn’t see any signs that it might develop in me. I don’t know how he knows that, but he has a cavalier attitude about a lot of things.
I don’t think it is definitive but according to my optometrist it might indicate where you are on the spectrum of how fast the disease may progress. Since I have the beginnings of macular degeneration I figured it couldn’t hurt. I think she has every piece of new equipment ever created for testing eye maladies.
Not telling. Don’t want to spoil it.
I’m starting to be skeptical about the diagnosis of macular generation. It seems like every other person I know (including my husband) has the beginning of the condition. Sounds like a lot of doctors have gotten new machines they’re experimenting with. One friend got a second opinion and the second doctor said he didn’t have signs of it. I guess the most important thing is to track it over time.
Yes, and yes.
This documentary was fascinating. The Journey of Man.