Newsletter Subject

Race/Related: Following Your DNA Trail

From

nytimes.com

Email Address

nytdirect@nytimes.com

Sent On

Sun, Apr 30, 2017 10:36 AM

Email Preheader Text

Readers share what they learned from their surprising test results. View in | Add nytdirect@nytimes.

Readers share what they learned from their surprising test results. View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Sunday, April 30, 2017 [Join Race/Related »]( [] Franziska Barczyk This is the latest edition of the Race/Related newsletter. To get it in your inbox weekly, [sign up here](. Tell your friends and [share your stories](. Last week’s [exploration]( of people’s reactions to their DNA makeup prompted readers to share what they learned when their test results came in. Adoptees wrote in about the relief they felt in making a discovery about their roots. Others expressed delight when the outcome confirmed their beliefs. Some questioned the tests’ accuracy. A few unearthed family secrets – that a parent was not theirs, or that brothers and sisters were actually half-siblings. The hunger to learn more about ethnic origins is pushing many to delve deeper. So will we. We’re planning more coverage on ancestry and origins, but this issue is devoted to your stories. We selected a few from hundreds, and edited them for clarity and space. Sara Norvell I had my DNA tested about five years ago to determine my ethnic genetic background. Earlier, I had found evidence from the National Archives that my great-grandfather was a member of the United States Colored Troops, and on that record it listed his prior slave owner. After the test results came in, I matched as fourth cousins with a woman in Charleston, S.C., who was a direct descendant of the slave owner. Thus, my great-great grandfather was a slave owner who owned my great-grandfather but was also his father. Holly Hafer My maternal grandmother’s maiden name was Mozingo. She was from North Carolina.   My maternal grandfather’s family was Irish with the last name Lee. My father’s side of the family was English. I saw an article by a man named Joe Mozingo who said all Mozingos in the United States were descendants of Edward Mozingo, who came to Virginia from Africa in the 1600s. He came as an indentured servant and was, supposedly, only 10 to 15 years old. My daughter and I learned that I am .6 percent sub-Saharan African and she is .3 percent. My mother learned that she is 1 percent Sub-Saharan African. I traced our ancestry back ten generations and it clearly shows that Edward Mozingo is our ancestor, and that he was an African who married an English woman while it was still legal for him to do so. I am proud of my ancestor and can only imagine the life he had to live. There are “white” and “black” branches of the family. I would have been forced to attend another high school if this were common knowledge in the 1950s and 60s because schools were segregated then. It is funny to me that as a blond, blue-eyed girl, I was a cheerleader and homecoming queen. This would have never happened if the truth had been known. Kezia-Alean Osunsade There were few parts of my ancestry that I was rather sure of, but others were completely a mystery. My father was born and raised in Nigeria, with both of his parents coming from the Yoruba tribe. My mother is African-American and knows very little about her ancestry. Due to her fairer skin and loose curl pattern, people often would ask her: “What are you mixed with?” Family members told stories about being Native American, but could never identify a tribe. My mother believed that due to America’s dark past with slavery, she would never find the answer to these questions that have lingered for generations. My results showed that my mother is mainly African, but also Irish. She now has a sense of fulfillment for finally getting an answer. Even my father found out new information. I turned out to have more ancestry in Benin than Nigeria. African-Americans face a nearly impossible feat tracing their ancestry using conventional methods, but using DNA provides new insights that did not previously exist. [] Franziska Barczyk John Reinhart My great-great grandfather came to America from Germany in 1860s. I’ve always identified with my German heritage. So, big surprise when DNA tests show I am almost 70 percent English/Irish. I forgot about all those English-Irish women my German ancestors married, and completely forgot my mother’s contributions.  Now I’m mourning all those Saint Patrick’s days that I failed to celebrate. Janis Owens I’m a genealogist, and six years ago had my DNA done. I have my paper tree going back many generations with only a few brick walls. I am a white woman from Jackson County, Fla., which borders Alabama, and almost all of my family has lived in South Alabama since the early 1800s. My mother and I are very light skinned, with light eyes. My father was hazel eyed, with darker complexion and black hair. His family was known to have Jewish blood and Native American from Kentucky. They self-described as “Little Black Dutch” even as late as the 1950s. The large majority of my DNA was Moroccan Berber, Turkish and Spanish/French. The majority of Moroccan Berber was the great inexplicable mystery, though Alabama relatives moved there in the 1820s from coastal South Carolina, where the Spanish were known to have “Moorish” slaves. I do have a small amount of Native American DNA, but the Moroccans won this round. All my relatives fought for the Confederacy and were staunch Baptists and Methodists, and I have actually written [a cookbook]( on Southern cooking. I mean, we are deep-fried Moroccan Berbers down here. Chi Anne McGrew I was excited to see my background as I come from a very diverse family.  On my mother’s side, my grandfather moved north from Arkansas to Kansas in the 1930s because he could “pass” for white and people did not know his family. My paternal great-grandmother was 100 percent Cherokee and her family had been moved with the Trail of Tears. Imagine my surprise when I discovered I couldn’t be whiter: 100 percent Northern European. I called my Dad and let him know that Grandma was not a Cherokee princess. He countered with her tan as evidence. So, for my stepmother’s birthday. I sent them both the kit., too. We are anxiously awaiting the results, but I suspect that the only color in our family is going to be in the tales we apparently tell. Maryellen Shpak I tested my DNA early this year.  I had expected to be mostly Irish as I had Irish immigrant grandparents on both my maternal and paternal sides.  I was totally floored to learn I was 28 percent Eastern European Jewish!  Quite a shock for this presumed Irish Catholic girl! Mazel tov! [] Franziska Barczyk Katie Hutchison I was adopted at birth to a wonderful family, but always wondered about my ancestry. Should I go to an Irish festival? Can I buy a kilt? Do I have an excuse to eat excessive amounts of paczki? I am fairly pale, so I always assumed I was Irish/Scottish/Polish/Finnish/etc. or some other very white European nationality. My results showed 50 percent European and 50 percent Middle Eastern.  My top two countries were Tunisia and Qatar, and that kind of blew my mind because it had never occurred to me, based on my features and skin tone.  In 2015, Ohio opened all their closed adoption records. I applied for and received my original birth certificate. After some investigative work by me, I found my birth family. I have not contacted any of them, but they believe that they are Scottish and French. Tunisia was a French protectorate from 1881-1956 so the Tunisian heritage also makes historical sense. I am glad I know my ancestral heritage.  My daughter is turning 5 years old in May and wants an Aladdin/Jasmine-themed birthday party, and I am incorporating some Tunisian dishes. Jamie Swezey I was adopted from South Korea as an infant, and I traveled to Seoul last year to do a birth family search. I had been in contact through letters and photos with my birth family — Mom, Dad, two older sisters — before arriving. We met and had an incredibly emotional reunion. A couple of weeks later, after getting our DNA test results back to confirm that we were in fact biological family, we found out that we were not related. It is most likely that I was switched at or closely after birth with another baby girl. All of my records are wrong, and essentially I hold another adoptee’s baby and birth family identity, while she unknowingly holds mine. I never would’ve found any of this out had I not done the DNA test. There are legal, bureaucratic, cultural, and more challenges in Korea and the U.S. when it comes to contacting the other adoptee, so it’s probable that I will never find my counterpart or true biological family.   Carl Johnson I am a 55-year-old American male of African descent. I have a dark complexion and grew up in rural East Tennessee with my mother’s relatives. I wanted to have DNA testing done to confirm rumors of my Native American heritage. To my surprise, my results were 84 percent West African, 14 percent European, and 2 percent East Asian. My bigger dilemma is: How do I embrace my European origins? It’s assumed that the European DNA was obtained by force during slavery. I think that is most likely. But what if my European ancestors were indentured servants who worked closely with African slaves and a real romance evolved, despite the cultural norms of that time, and now here I am? If I am true to myself and the scientific evidence that provides richness to the DNA I’ve inherited, I now need to figure out a way to honor all of me and those who survived to make me possible. The journey and adventure continues. ADVERTISEMENT [A shopping mall in the Koreatown neighborhood in Los Angeles on April 30, 1992, the second day of rioting in the city after the the beating of Rodney King by police officers.] A shopping mall in the Koreatown neighborhood in Los Angeles on April 30, 1992, the second day of rioting in the city after the the beating of Rodney King by police officers. Nick Ut/Associated Press Connect with us. Join us on Facebook at 9 p.m. Eastern on Wednesdays. In our latest live chat, Marc Lacey, the National editor at The Times, spoke with correspondents Rachel Swarns and John Eligon about the riots that broke out in Los Angeles 25 years ago. Marc and Rachel covered the riots as reporters, and they discussed the legacy of the riots, and the racial tensions they exposed. [[Watch]( Know anyone else who might like to subscribe to Race/Related? Then please forward our email to a friend, and have that friend sign up at: [( If you liked the illustrations in this newsletter, you might be interested in [The New York Times Live Drawing Series](. Around the Web Here are some of the stories that we’re talking about, beyond The Times. Professor Carnage [[Read]( The Struggles of Writing About Chinese Food as a Chinese Person [[Read]( Defining Black Intellectualism [[Listen]( We’re Influenced by Racial Information Even When We’re Not Aware of Its Presence [[Read]( In The Times The Times publishes many stories that touch on race. Here are a few you shouldn’t miss, chosen by Race/Related editors. [Welcome to Weimar]( By RICK LYMAN AND MELISSA EDDY Germany settled the migrants with classic efficiency and astonishing speed. But on the person-to-person level where integration really happens, there were staggering cultural headwinds. [Florida Apologizes for ‘Gross Injustices’ to Four Black Men, Decades Later]( By JACEY FORTIN The so-called Groveland Four were convicted of raping a white woman in 1949. This week, the state apologized for its role. [China Bans ‘Muhammad’ and ‘Jihad’ as Baby Names in Heavily Muslim Region]( By JAVIER C. HERNÁNDEZ Officials said the ban was part of an effort to “curb religious fervor” in Xinjiang, but rights advocates called it the latest in a line of hostile policies. [How a Nation Reconciles After Genocide Killed Nearly a Million People]( By MEGAN SPECIA “Reconciliation villages” place homes for those convicted of carrying out the violence alongside those who suffered at their hands. [The L.A. Riots 25 Years Later: A Return to the Epicenter]( By JENNIFER MEDINA Much has improved in Los Angeles since violence exploded over the beating of an unarmed black man, Rodney King, by the police. But lately, many say they believe more unrest is likely. ADVERTISEMENT We want to hear from you. We’d love your feedback on this newsletter. Please email thoughts and suggestions to [racerelated@nytimes.com](mailto:racerelated@nytimes.com?subject=Newsletter%20Feedback). Want more Race/Related? Follow us on Instagram, where we continue the conversation about race through stunning visuals. [Instagram]( [INSTAGRAM]( FOLLOW RACE/RELATED [Instagram] [racerelated]( Get more [NYTimes.com newsletters »]( | Get unlimited access to NYTimes.com and our NYTimes apps. [Subscribe »]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Race/Related newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2017 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018

Edit & Download HTML

Add To Favourites

EDM Keywords (283)

year xinjiang wrong writing would woman white weimar week wednesdays web way wants wanted want virginia unrest turned tunisia truth true tribe traveled trail traced touch times time think tested tell tan talking tales switched suspect survived surprise supposedly suggestions suffered subscribe struggles stories stepmother spanish slavery sisters signed side shock share sent sense selected segregated see scottish schools saw said round riots rioting return results reporters relief relatives related records record received reactions raping raised race questions questioned qatar proud probable possible police planning photos person people parts part parent paczki owned others origins obtained nigeria newsletter need mystery mozingos mozingo moved mourning mother moroccans mixed mind migrants might methodists met message member mean may maternal matched married making make majority love lived live little listed lingered line likely liked life letters let legacy learned learn latest late korea knows known know kit kind kilt kentucky kansas journey jihad issue irish interested instagram inherited influenced infant incorporating improved imagine illustrations hunger hundreds honor hear hands grew grandma going go glad getting get germany generations genealogist funny fulfillment friends friend found forgot forced force figure felt feedback features father family failed facebook exploration expected excuse excited evidence essentially epicenter english embrace email effort edited eastern due done dna discussed discovery discovered devoted determine descendants days daughter dad coverage couple counterpart countered cookbook convicted conversation contributions continue contacting contacted contact confirm confederacy completely comes come color closely clarity city cheerleader charleston challenges carrying came called buy brothers broke born blew birthday birth beyond benin believe beliefs beating based ban background baby aware assumed article arriving arkansas applied answer ancestry ancestor america also almost african africa adoptee adopted 60s 1950s 1949 1930s 1860s 1820s 1600s 10

nytimes.com

NYTimes.com

Marketing emails from nytimes.com

View More
Sent On

08/12/2024
Sent On

08/12/2024
Sent On

07/12/2024
Sent On

07/12/2024
Sent On

07/12/2024
Sent On

07/12/2024

Email Content Statistics

Subscribe Now

Subject Line Length

Data shows that subject lines with 6 to 10 words generated 21 percent higher open rate.

Subscribe Now

Average in this category

Subscribe Now

Number of Words

The more words in the content, the more time the user will need to spend reading. Get straight to the point with catchy short phrases and interesting photos and graphics.

Subscribe Now

Average in this category

Subscribe Now

Number of Images

More images or large images might cause the email to load slower. Aim for a balance of words and images.

Subscribe Now

Average in this category

Subscribe Now

Time to Read

Longer reading time requires more attention and patience from users. Aim for short phrases and catchy keywords.

Subscribe Now

Average in this category

Subscribe Now

Predicted open rate

Subscribe Now

Spam Score

Spam score is determined by a large number of checks performed on the content of the email. For the best delivery results, it is advised to lower your spam score as much as possible.

Subscribe Now

Flesch reading score

Flesch reading score measures how complex a text is. The lower the score, the more difficult the text is to read. The Flesch readability score uses the average length of your sentences (measured by the number of words) and the average number of syllables per word in an equation to calculate the reading ease. Text with a very high Flesch reading ease score (about 100) is straightforward and easy to read, with short sentences and no words of more than two syllables. Usually, a reading ease score of 60-70 is considered acceptable/normal for web copy.

Subscribe Now

Technologies

What powers this email? Every email we receive is parsed to determine the sending ESP and any additional email technologies used.

Subscribe Now

Email Size (not include images)

Font Used

No. Font Name
Subscribe Now

Copyright © 2019–2025 SimilarMail.