Thomas D. Jakes, bishop of
Potter’s House, a megachurch in the United States, has recounted how he traced
his roots to Nigeria, where he has discovered that his “ancestors were Igbos.”
The prominent cleric brought this
revelation to light during an interview with BBC Igbo, where he also spoke
about his experiences with Nigerian cuisines, saying they made his head sweat.
Jakes revealed how he has
responded since after his DNA test traced his ancestry to the Igbo tribe.
“It all started when Henry Lewis
Gates, who was at Harvard, decided to this DNA testing to see where my ancestry
came from. It was me, it was Oprah Winfrey. It was Quincy Jones and others,” he
said.
“Mine was traced back to West Africa,
to Nigeria and particularly Igbo. My ancestors were Igbos. It’s indescribable.
It gives something that we the African-Americans don’t have, which is roots.
“It gave me an understanding of
my roots. It was interesting to see how similar my personality is to how Igbo
people are described. They’re described as hardworking, industrious and
innovative.
“They have strong business
acumen. I deeply relate to that. It explained me to me. It’s odd that I was
never born there, yet, see so many traces. I’ve always had a strong business
acumen.
“I’ve been aggressive in
business. Although I’ve been known for the faith aspect, I have several
companies and I’ve owned my own resources. My children all started studying
ancestry about Igbos, and even more about Africa. I’ll like to reconnect with
our brothers and sisters over there.”
Jakes: I eat fufu, jollof rice in
Nigeria
“When I’m in Nigeria, I
experience the food. I eat the fufu and the jollof rice. I have those kinds of
experience. I’ve had more than I can name. I go to Accra in Ghana and Lagos
quite often,” he continued.
“What I know about the food is
that it’s almost always hot and spicy. I ate it before but the food over there
is so hot it makes your head sweat. And I like it.
“One of the tragedies of slave
trade is not just that we were taken from our home, culture, people, and food.
We lost our history. African-American history is taught over here from boat
landings.
“And we assumed a name that does
not define us. Jakes is a German name that only signified who owned my
ancestors. To reach beyond the boats an chains to touch a soil where I’m from.
“To understand that my ancestors
were something before they were a slave is extremely gratifying. It really
confirms why I have such fascination about the continent of Africa.
Nigeria still grappling with the
after-effects of colonialism, says Jakes
On what’s in store for Africa
regarding international trade and globalisation, the cleric said he hopes the
continent’s dealings with world powers doesn’t wipe out what is left of its
culture and history.
“Colonialism affected you as
slavery did us. So we’re still trying to untangle ourselves from the
after-effects of some of the atrocities that did not dignify us,” he said.
“They were more interested in the
land than the people. So they divided up the land at the expense of the people.
And I think we’re still trying to overcome that. I say ‘we’ because we were
there too.
“I deeply respect and understand
that there’s a passion amongst may Igbos to recede from Nigeria to develop
their own influence and culture. We’re grappling with the after-effects of
colonialism.
“We need to re-understand
ourselves beyond white supremacy and reconnect. We can’t become so tribal that
we do it to disintegrate opportunities that come through trade and
interconnectivity.
“There’s huge opportunity for
Africans and African-Americans to come together for business and prosperity.
The more we explore each other, the better for our civilization.
“My hope for Igbos; Africa is
that, as superpowers come in with technology, culture isn’t snuffed out. And
that they understand that ownership is critical in the deals they make with the
world.”
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