DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR. And I gave it to her for birthday. I love you. He is a Trustee of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. And my grandfather was so white, we called him Casper behind his back. And we'd have the chess board set up. GATES: And because it was PBS, we negotiated a deal with this company Illumina which sequences everybody. "Finding Your Roots" is essentially a pop genealogy show, right? CORNISH: That's NPR's TV critic, Eric Deggans. And what's the real showstopper for me is the fact that my three sets of my fourth great grandparents lived 18 miles from where I was born. . As a mediator between [] One way of comparing research reports and family history books is to imagine a car: A research report is like the cars engine. I can do it. The new season of his TV series "Finding Your Roots" is now showing on PBS. They came in slave ships. When we left off, Gates was talking about his own DNA mix. After that, everything stopped. You were 9 years old when you found her picture. said Henry Louis Gates Jr. "Encarta Africana 2000 is a captivating and engaging resource that can educate students of all ages." Within its 3,600 articles, the latest version includes new information and multimedia features that will allow students to learn even more about African culture and history. Henry serves as a Trustee of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. So what that means is that it's the percent of - if you had a perfect family tree, what percent would be from sub-Saharan Africa? You might have prostate cancer that runs in your family. He was a free negro, as we would have said then. GATES: I go, yeah, I got a brother who's a dentist, you know? "When I was filming Oprah, I realized that I had misunderstood the narrative arc of the shoot. My father loved sports, and I didn't care about sports that much. On the show, they usually find photographs by contacting the guests relatives or distant cousins. GROSS: There's some people who are trying to use genealogy to out people who are white supremacists and say, oh, you think you're so pure white, that that's such a big deal? Kids don't even know what they are anymore, but everybody here does. Elizabeth Shotbolt , Phillip Fordham, Bridget Shelley , Anthony Hungerford. I asked a PBS representative that question many times, and she would only repeat back the language that's from this statement. And the reason I wanted to be a writer is that my mother wrote so beautifully and read so beautifully. The tale, as I later discovered, is a tangled one. And it's for my father. Listen 9:01. GROSS: And I read you talking about this. More research time equals more discoveries, enabling the researchers to uncover those mind-blowing records fit for television. After living in Lexington, Mass., following the death of his wife, Mr. Gates had resided for the past several years at the. GATES: Well, I think that you should have the right to - you have to ask someone. Copyright 2015 NPR. She was quite a lady. We have a genius, genetic genealogist, one of the pioneers of the field in CeCe Moore." And she invents this pancake mix, and they become fabulously wealthy. Henry Louis Gates Jr. doesn't seem too worried about "critical race theory" or "white fragility" or "woke warriors" or any of those ridiculous buzzwords that get tossed around when . So you GATES: Because of this white man. GATES: And then when they did my admixture, I'm 50 percent sub-Saharan African and 50 percent European and virtually no Native American ancestry, which really pisses my family off. Where does your nickname Skip come from? And a doctor from the Philippines taught me to play chess at West Virginia University Medical Center in Morgantown, W.Va. And he'd come around in rounds. GROSS: But you also wanted to know who were your African ancestors. After Ben Affleck Scandal, PBS Postpones 'Finding Your Roots'. ", Gates Jr. said he'd originally focused on Black guests as African and African American studies were his "brand as it were.". Off. And at the time, the airwaves were so segregated, they only put black films on "The Late Late Show." Please try again. It's a gift - and for my mom. Become a member of THIRTEEN ($5 monthly or $60 annually) and get access to THIRTEEN Passport as our thanks for your support. A professional genealogist is the person who will build your family tree using records youre familiar with from the show, like censuses and vital records. By Henry Louis Gates Jr. Dr. Gates is the director of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard. They - but you're absolutely right. RELATED VIDEOS. Henry Louis Gates Jr. reveals that he and John Lithgow are DNA cousins. Finding Your Roots airs weekly on Tuesdays on PBS. For the most part, genealogists compile their findings on your family history into a research report. And then black people would tell each other - they would say, you know, be sure to watch "The Late Late Show" tonight because "Imitation Of Life," which is my favorite film - 1934, with Claudette Colbert. They begin their conversation by discussing how Henry's upbringing and the . So lets look at some numbers! Thank you so much for accepting this award. GATES: But then they did another special test. It was just put on the historic GATES: Register in Maryland. It may include images of records, text, a family tree chart, maps, and any number of other elements related to your family history (though some family history books contain very few images). But mutations exist. Not all genealogists do, so youll want to look for someone who has books listed in their services. Henry Louis Gates Jr. doesn't seem too worried about "critical race theory" or "white fragility" or "woke warriors" or any of those ridiculous buzzwords . And we filmed the whole thing. *48.6% Sub-Saharan African. My momma called me Skippy from the time I was born. So I want to read something that you wrote about her. (Well cover how to hire a genealogist later in this blog post.). So (laughter) given the example that President Obama set in calming down that kind of argument in America over you and this officer, what do you hear now coming from our president? On the PBS series, Gates visits Trinity College to find his roots, and says to the genealogist, "Do I look like an Irishman to you? "My idea was that I would reveal where in Africa, on a guest mother's mother's line, they had hailed from. In a piece Henry wrote for The Daily Beast in February 2021 about Black churches and their "cultural ties" to Africa, Henry dipped into his personal life. The way to get a Finding Your Roots-style experience yourself is to hire a professional genealogist. July 28, 2009— -- Henry Louis Gates Jr., the black professor at the center of the racial story involving his arrest outside his Harvard University-owned house, has spoken proudly of his Irish roots. That's a long time when you're young. Would you do it? GATES: Well, the average African-American GATES: The average African-American is 24 percent European. You may yet have your own Bernie Sanders-style moment of genealogy-fueled surprise in the near future (though I cant say whether itll be because youre related to Larry David). And we're listening to Terry's interview with Henry Louis Gates. In some states - like, New York would let them vote sometimes, and then take it away. Finding Your Roots debuted on PBS on March 25, 2012, and has now been running for nine seasons. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. A new, four-part PBS series aspires to showcase the beauty, joy and achievements of the Black community. Terry will be one of the guests whose family history is explored next year in the sixth season of the show. But I also watched TV. Now you can get a full sequence for less than $5,000 - some people say $1,000 or $2,000. He grew up in neighboring Piedmont. Gates Jr. says since Moore joined the show, she has "changed fundamentally what was possible in terms of doing a person's family tree.". So the two men who took part in what is now an infamous confrontation outside the Gates home near Harvard this month are actually related through common Irish lineage -- one of the more extraordinary aspects of the incident that has sparked worldwide headlines. executive producer (40 episodes, 2012-2023) Dyllan McGee . If you are planning to get a family history book in the near future, now is the time to start emailing those distant cousins and rummaging around in your basement looking for pictures. And she throws herself on the casket. (Read Henry . That's how much the science of genetics has changed in terms of the retail market since 2009. You know, I try to - doing "Finding Your Roots" is a way to paying homage to my mother and father every year. GATES: So obviously somebody gave her that money. For $50,000, they sequenced my father, me and then 12 of the guests who were in "Faces Of America" - not a full genome but a dense genotyping. He has chaired Harvard University's department of Afro-American Studies for many years. If you remember, it was called "African-American Lives." It's - remember, it's - my father dragged my brother and me upstairs in his parents' home and made us wait why he'd look through half a dozen of his father's scrapbooks, about which we knew nothing - complete mystery, a secret to us - looking for that obituary. "A white man who slept with a black slave. And I wanted to be from them. Gates Jr. explained how mitochondrial DNA, inherited from the female ancestry line, doesn't change. But then President Obama called you both together. GATES: I did an episode with Oprah and Quincy Jones and Bishop T.D. To be clear, I don't work for Finding Your Roots; I'm just a professional genealogist who knows people who have worked on the show and I was present for the filming of an episode. But I saw that photograph and read her obituary on the day that we buried my father's father, Edward St. Lawrence Gates. GATES: Otherwise they wouldn't be in a database. And I think that we throw terms like that around too loosely. "militia" and "Native Guard" which all seem "soldier related" even if inaccurate. We'd spit in a test tube. And the obituary said, died this day in Cumberland, Md., January 6, 1888; Aunt Jane Gates, an estimable colored woman. The show tends to highlight only a couple of ancestors for televisiona smart strategy, because it allows the shows researchers to allocate larger chunks of time towards researching the most interesting people. African American Studies scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. was born in Keyser, West Virginia on September 16, 1950, the son of Henry Louis Gates Sr. and Pauline Augusta Coleman. One episode this season explores Gates' own DNA and family history. GROSS: I saw his picture in the obituary. She loved nicknames (my brother Paul Edward is Rocky). He reflects on his own history and some of the more controversial aspects of DNA testing. That indicates that they do them regularly, which is a positive sign. In front of all these people and all these viewers. Henry Louis Gates Jr. is a Professor of African and African-American Studies at Harvard University and Director of the W. E. B. We wanted to see what more we could tell Ben Affleck about the roots of his family's interest in social justice. There have been a lot of TV crossover episodes over the years, but this may be the most unique one yet: PBS' "Finding Your Roots" and host Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. will make a major appearance on Fox's "The Simpsons" this Sunday. And one of the, you know, wonderful people on "The View" said did I think that Donald Trump is racist. GATES: And I gave it to my mother once. So that was a steal. CLIP. GATES: We know he was Irish from my DNA. Even the Native Americans came from someplace else about 16,000 years ago. GATES: Maybe for Christmas, OK, that's fine (laughter). The supposedly fearless leader battled the English, the Scots, the French and even the Romans, and struck fear into the heart of his enemies. So I would say, you know, no, I don't think so. I'm here to find my roots. We started to roll. In general, however, a family history book is a bound or digital book with sections devoted to your ancestors. kannonspatafora66si29. It comes from slavery. They could probably find it out themselves. GROSS: Do you know - do you want to know your medical DNA? Tax ID: 26-2810489. A research report walks you through the documents found, what those documents say and mean, and the conclusions that the genealogist has drawn about your family. And so then they came in - this is a big deal back in 2008. This is FRESH AIR. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., (born September 16, 1950, Keyser, West Virginia, U.S.), American literary critic and scholar known for his pioneering theories of African and African American literature. In 2009, when I did "Faces Of America," a retail value of full genomic sequencing was $300,000. Henry Louis Gates. Thank God. So I just wrote an essay that was published by Yale University Press about race. And while youre at it, think about moving those pictures to dry, acid-free storage above-groundyour descendants will thank you! Genealogy is one of those things that you can keep doing forever, so itll be up to you, your genealogist, and your budget to determine a good stopping point for your project. Historian and African American Studies professor Gates Jr. has hosted a number of genealogy shows in the past, but Finding Your Roots on PBS has proved his most popular yet. Who is Henry Louis Gates Jr. married to? But this week, Gates's wish came true. Henry Louis Gates Jr. told CBS News that marking Juneteenth as a federal holiday was a long time coming.#cbsnews #juneteenth CBS News Streaming Network is th. And it turned out - my father used to say, you know, your mother's family is really distinguished, too? The daughter of prominent black scholar and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. said her father's arrest last week at his Cambridge home has deeply saddened him . But maybe youre thinking, But Im not here for a research report. GROSS: But you had family that passed for white. Family history books can vary widely from one genealogist to the next, but they may resemble chapter- or coffee-table books with sections devoted to your ancestors. But one story not told to most Irish elementary schoolchildren was of Niall's prolificacy. GATES: Now, we don't do blood anymore, right? Research reports are great! He rediscovered the earliest African-American novels, long forgotten, and has published extensively on appreciating African-American literature as part of the Western canon. But on the other hand, Terry, there were a lot of people who never forgave the country for electing a black man to the White House. PBS says it's now delaying the airing of new episodes until it can improve editorial oversight. GROSS: Yeah. It's incredible. Published February 4, 2023 at 1:25 PM AKST. GATES: And think about it. Beginning with the assassination of Malcolm X in February 1965, And Still I Rise: From Black Power to the White House explores the last half-century of the African American experience. As with any project, be sure to hire a qualified professional who is either certified, accredited, has completed extensive training through recognized institutions, and/or has been published in a peer-reviewed journal. A team of geneticists at Trinity College led by professor Dan Bradley have discovered that as many as 3 million men worldwide may be descendents of the Irish warlord, who was the Irish "High King" at Tara, the ancient center of Ireland from A.D. 379 to A.D. 405. And at this point, I'd run over to my mother and say, Mama, I'll never pass for white, Mama. Henry Louis Gates Jr. hosts the program, butas I understand ithe does not do the research into the guests' family histories himself. GATES: Yeah. Popular ancestry show Finding Your Roots is deep into its ninth season but host Henry Louis Gates Jr. admits he's "surprised" the show has worked so well with white people included. "What's really changed our series and distinguishes it from Who Do You Think You Are? GATES: admixture, I'm 50 percent sub-Saharan African and 50 percent European and virtually no Native American ancestry, which really pisses my family off. Gates has said back then that he and the producers decided not to include the information about Affleck's slave-owning history because they focused on other stuff they found more interesting about his family history. Combining family tree records with DNA genealogy technology, he initially pitched the show as "Alex Haley in a test tube" (Haley was the author of Roots: The Saga of an American Family). And I learned a lot about the medium. Maria Hinojosa's Great-Great-Grandfather Was a Railway CEO. The skill of the genealogist factors into the cost, with less experienced researchers charging less than seasoned professionals. Was this an equal sexual relationship? And my Y DNA, which is - comes in an unbroken chain, descends from this Irishman. The minister would call on her. As the host of the hit show Finding Your Roots, now in its sixth season on PBS, he helps guests like Ava DuVernay, Sean . "My favorite class was an ancient history class in the fifth grade when I was 10 years old. He is a Trustee of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. There we go. The fifth season of Gates' TV series "Finding Your Roots" is now running on PBS. "It was so popular that PBS said, 'nah, you gotta cut white people in on this,'" Gates Jr. laughed. His name was John Redman. It measures your ancestry back 500 years approximately. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University. Millions of Irish Americans, especially those in New York, may be directly descended, like Gates, from Niall of the Nine Hostages, the most prolific warrior in Irish history. So I thought that I had a pretty good chance. CORNISH: And they said that they found the show's producers violated PBS standards by failing to shield the creative and editorial process from improper influence. Coming up, journalist Brian Palmer talks about how slavery and the Civil War are described at Confederate historic sites in the South. GROSS: When you were 14, you had a football injury. a book. You don't get $1,400 by saving your nickels and dimes as a slave, right? All that was on still in 1965 in syndication. And that is a long time. And most DNA companies in the United States will tell you that they have never tested an African-American who is 100 percent from sub-Saharan Africa. Finding the right genealogist for your projectmaking sure they are qualified, signing a contract, etccan be a confusing task, even if you have been researching your tree for awhile. This sounds really obvious, but when youre comparing genealogists, make sure the genealogist offers family history books. And just the optics of a seeing a rich, white movie star pressure a black historian into suppressing information about this guy's slave-owning past and his family, that's really bad on all kinds of levels. One thing they dont cover on Finding Your Roots is how much it would cost to get a similar experience in real life. So, your real-life family history book might resemble a novel or coffee-table book, rather than a scrapbook like those on the program. GATES: Oh, my father and I were the first father and son of any race and the first African-Americans fully sequenced. Well, I'll tell you a funny story. Unfortunately Gates failed in delivering on this, and instead left the . And then they'll make their decision on when they're going to schedule the third season and if they're going to do a fourth season. Last year, Gates uncovered a manuscript of a novel purportedly written in the 1850s by an African American woman who had been a slave. When I became a teenager, my father and I bonded. No one's ever asked me that, but the answer's yes because I studied with a person who has been on your show, Wole Soyinka, the Nigerian playwright, when I went to the University of Cambridge. GROSS: OK, for two weeks. Related topic Henry Louis Gates Jr. Related topic. And there were a lot of people who voted for Donald Trump as a repudiation vote. in England and in the U.S. is the use of DNA. They know about their heritage.' GATES: Yeah, I loved books. 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