Genealogy is not new. But recently it's become much more popular, probably due to the ease of getting in to it with digital collections. That popularity led to two shows on television that go through celebrities' ancestry - Who Do You Think You Are (which began on BBC, then in the US on NBC and now TLC), and PBS's Finding Your Roots. I think it's great. Genealogy is about history, research, ephemera, and remember the past in ways that are personal. It tells the story of individuals, and really, that's what history inevitably is - stories. Through our obsession with the lives of celebrities we can promote a love of history and an interest in genealogy. The more people who want to research, the more money and effort goes in to making resources and documents available to us. People can take pride and an active part in their past, and draw their family together.
So then Ben Affleck decided he didn't like all the details about his ancestry and this happened:
I really appreciate that PBS are responding to this. I appreciate that, even though this is an unimportant incident (as opposed to spreading wrong info on the News Hour), they are treating it as a violation of what they feel is the right way to do things. Everyone involved, including Gates, should get the lashing on it. The truth is the truth, not what you want it to be.
Families lie and manipulate the truth about their past ALL THE TIME. We like to idealize the past and hide the skeletons. Look at any high school history book. It makes genealogy that much harder for trying to piece out the bullshit. I've seen my own family refuse to acknowledge the failings of dead relatives. I've found census records with my family blatantly taking 10yrs off their ages (ahem, GGrandma Athing). Books about my ancestry have left out family members because the informants didn't like them. I approached my KY line expecting to find slave owners. Just because your family did shit in the past does not mean that you are a bad person. You accept it, you accept it was wrong (hello ppl clinging desperately to your Confederate battle flags...) and you MOVE THE HELL ON.
I am not a bad person just because an ancestor may have had a child with his step-daughter. Nor will I hide this fact or be embarrassed by it. Who cares? I had ancestors fight for both the Union and the Confederacy. Though census records show my family (at least my direct line) didn't own slaves, it was probably just because they were too poor. I can't imagine that they weren't just as racist as the rest of the South. Not sure yet if the colonial line had any. They might have, after they started having money and influence. And that's ok, too. It's history. It is what it is.
I don't believe in keeping skeletons in the closet. I need that space for shoes. And those who know me know I decorate with bones.
So chill, Ben. Get over it.
