Thursday, February 10, 2022
Jada Benn Torres, Associate Professor of Anthropology and the director for the Laboratory of Genetic Anthropology and Biocultural Studies at Vanderbilt University, and Gabriel Torres Colón, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University, led a discussion centered on genetic ancestry, “mangrove politics,” and birthing Afro-Puerto Rican futures.
Nestled in the northeastern coastline of Puerto Rico and within one of the most extensive mangrove forests in the Caribbean, most of the people of Piñones—or, piñoneros—are descendants of both formerly enslaved and self-liberated African peoples. Since 2017, the “Genetic Ancestry and Cultural Identity” project in Puerto Rico has yielded a collaborative effort utilizing genetic technology and ethnographic research to buttress the foundation for Afro-Puerto Rican recognition, autonomy, and political action.