This article ran on the front page of the New York Times on April 12. The article discusses how modern technology has made it possible for the average person to purchase a DNA kit for approximately $100 that will tell them what their racial genetic make up is and where their ancestors are from.

My first thought, was that it was really interesting. I thought about how for someone that was adopted and did not have much or any information on their birth family, ancestors, etc. that it could be a very valuable tool in trying to answer the “who am I” question.

The article talked about how many people were using these DNA kits in hopes of finding that they have some small percentage of Native American DNA, so that they can then use it for monetary advantages, such as college scholarships. This MSNBC article and this article from Wired.com also talk about DNA testing and the impact that these easy to get, easy to use kits are having on people.


Some people are using them with a genuine interested on their genealogy and to learn more about their ancestors, etc. Others are using them to have medical profiles done, and to see if they are genetically predisposed to diseases, etc.

I think that what appeals to me about these kits giving people their “racial make-ups” and the “good” that I think that they are doing is that it is making people rethink race and “who they are”. Not one of the examples given in the articles showed a person getting back the “expected” results. A man who thought he was African American found out that he was actually had no African blood in him at all, but was 57 percent Indo-European, 39 percent Native American, 4 percent East Asian. Plenty of African Americans find that they have white ancestors, and equal numbers of Caucasians find that they have African and Native American ancestors. A man raised Christian found out that he was a large part Jewish.

To me, this is just showing time and time again and that here in America there are very few “pure race” people any more. I would hope too, that if a man who had always thought of himself as “white” were to find out that he had African ancestors, that maybe that man would find himself caring a lot more about the African American community and make other changes in his life. It would be my hope that this sort of information would bring people together and make the lines between black and white seem a bit more blurry.

I am not a big “science” person, and with all of the practical things needed around here I doubt I will be paying $100 for a DNA kit anytime soon (although it would be fun!), but I am glad that other people are doing it. I am glad that people are finding themselves connected to other races, other people and other cultures. I like things that make the world seem a little smaller and the people in that world a little more similar than some would like to think. And I really like the idea that many people are finding out that they are a part of a transracial family.