Roots and Revelations

Henry Louis Gates Jr. - one of America’s leading public intellectuals and director of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard - explains the implications of knowing about our personal pasts. Actor Joe Manganiello will then join him onstage to talk about what he learned from his appearance on Gates’ hit PBS show, “Finding your Roots.”

[@reddeserted13]

Best session I've seen at Aspen.

[@niechellejeffery7246]

Dr Gates is a national treasure ❤👏🏽

[@edzahida]

I’m here because of Joe. Beautiful speech. Dr. Gates always amazing!

[@CharlesVaughn-bm9gq]

Dr. Gates does make a living from past abuse of blacks but he is honest about facts such as a fair number of blacks owned slaves. Slavery is not a racial issue, it’s an economic and man’s inhumanity to man issue.

[@CharlesVaughn-bm9gq]

Who is more cruel? Germans, Turks, or Kurds?

[@CharlesVaughn-bm9gq]

Dr. Gates is the best dressed man on TV.

[@BeverlyChandran-h5f]

I don’t understand why it was so necessary for the son -in-law to check the “Black box” when Dr. Gates is married to a white woman, his daughter looks white (according to online photos), and he stated that he grand daughter looks like a white girl.
Many interracial children who can pass for white are likely not want to check the “Black box” if she could choose herself (just like in the early days) given the amount of hardships and trauma that come with being Black.
I certainly respect his work, but when Black men can only find love and success via white women sends a conflicting message as far as I am concerned. Why would the son-in-law be obligated to check the “Black box” anyway??? Because of the “one-drop” rule?