Gates’ genealogy talk fascinates local crowd

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AUTHORS! AUTHORS!

Professor’s interest sparked at family funeral

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Gates’ genealogy talk fascinates local crowd
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Henry Louis Gates, Jr., has been interested in genealogy since 1960.
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Henry Louis Gates, Jr., arguably the foremost African-American scholar in the nation, held his audience’s attention Thursday from the time he took the stage at the Stranahan Theater until he took the last question 90 minutes later at Authors! Authors!

Mr. Gates’ presentation about genealogy and his personal quest to probe the racial makeup of America enthralled the audience. He was lively and entertaining as he talked about how he became interested in genealogy.

The Harvard professor, who is also the university’s Alphonse Fletcher Professor, recalled that the moment he became interested in genealogy was when he stood with his father before his grandfather’s casket in July, 1960, and when later that day his father introduced him and his brother to the oldest Gates ancestor: Jane Gates, 1819-1888, whose obituary described her as an “estimable colored woman,” he said.

That experience, coupled with what began as a compelling desire to learn more about his family’s background — Mr. Gates said his grandfather looked like a white man — is behind his extensive work on genealogy. Among those works is his 10-part series on Public Broadcasting in which the professor shows Americans with household names — Samuel L. Jackson, Barbara Walters, Condoleeza Rice are among them — details about their roots and who their ancestors are.

The subject is so fascinating that millions of Americans are turning to DNA companies to uncover their backgrounds. Mr. Gates’ work in genealogy, though, is not merely for the sole satisfaction of watching famous Americans become emotional and overwhelmed with the details of their past.

Thursday’s speaker for the Authors! Authors! series, which is sponsored by The Blade and the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, believes that genealogy shatters our current concepts of race and that it would make all the difference if school children were taught about American history by using genealogy.

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