While Adam thoroughly highlights
the technical inaccuracies possible in genetic ancestry testing, it seems to me
that, regardless of the accuracy of their results, they should be done
cautiously. The author begins the article by discussing the questions people
have about their own ancestry: questions concerning who their ancestors are and
where they were from. He seems to initially posit that the answers to these
questions come along with “a sense of belonging, identity, and continuity.” (p.
152). Furthermore, these desires to belong are not as superficial as the level
of the country, but run as deeply as specific geographic location and even
tribes; in this, people look for distinct cultural practices that they might be
tied to.
DNA
testing may be exactly what could bring these desires into reality, or so the
author says at first. Further examination of such procedures indicates that
they may not even be that reliable. But, the potential inaccuracy of these
tests, is not the true double-sided sword that Rotimi is discussing. What
people should truly be cautious of, is the results they may find from these
tests. Discovering your ancestors are not who you thought you were, as in the
example the author gives with the slave-traffickers, is just one instance where
the results of genetic ancestry testing might do more harm than good. Sometimes
the harm may be more of confusion; finding out your ancestors were of a certain
culture may in fact connect you with your roots, or it could further constrict
your vision of yourself to a certain niche.
Thus
the value of genetic testing must be approached with caution; it may be truly
revealing for someone to learn about their ancestors’ cultures, but it may also
be equally constricting!
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