Black People : African DNA testing a fraud?? Ericka Badu (Bamileke)

[Shems Nbedjer]

Starting this thread to see if someone in the community has submitted their DNA for testing to trace their roots back to their ancestors and what was the outcome.

Ericka Badu testing experience:
http://www.okayafrica.com/2014/05/20/erykah-badu-family-history-african-ancestry/

Debate on the legitimacy of DNA testing:
http://www.africanamerica.org/topic/newsflash-african-ancestry-dna-fraud

 

[Omowale Jabali]

I won't say its a fraud but, 2 parents, 4 grandparents, 8 great grandparents, 16 great-great grandparents, 32 great-great-grandparents.

How does a test then reduce all this to ONE "tribe"?

 

[Blackbird]

I won't say its a fraud but, 2 parents, 4 grandparents, 8 great grandparents, 16 great-great grandparents, 32 great-great-grandparents.

How does a test then reduce all this to ONE "tribe"?

Peace Uncle,

How you been?

Thanks for bringing up this question even though I am sure that they went through Ms. Badu's direct mtDNA line to reach this conclusion. I would say that I would personally cross verify with a roots reading for a probable traditional African perspective.

 

[Omowale Jabali]

Peace Uncle,

How you been?

Thanks for bringing up this question even though I am sure that they went through Ms. Badu's direct mtDNA line to reach this conclusion. I would say that I would personally cross verify with a roots reading for a probable traditional African perspective.

Peace, bro. Blackbird.

I'm good.

You actually confirm my point. Mtdna only traces the maternal ancestry. That's only one side of one's lineage.

As far as the Bamileke are concerned there is no single group and one supposedly traces back to Ancient Egypt.

 

[Shems Nbedjer]

Bro Blackbird and Dr. Omowale Jabali thanks for chiming in.

I have been working on my roots tree for years. I traced both sides back to Virginia...and now I'm at a dead end because I havent had time to explore things in Virginia. My mother's father side comes from Shreveport, Louisiana. I found like 3-4 generations of the family in different Caddo censuses but to this day we are disconnected from this side of the family currently living in Shreveport.

So my other choices are to:
Submit a African DNA from the oldest living women in my family
Get a roots reading from a legitimate ATR elder
Select a country in Africa and designate it as my home country

By the way I'm not totally consumed with this journey but my internal destiny burns with this quest.