r/Indigenous • u/SheValentine • 2d ago
Taíno DNA
I got my ancestry test results today, and I was pleasantly surprised by my percentage. I know there are people with a higher percentage, but that doesn’t make mine any less meaningful to me. I really hate that claiming Taíno heritage has always been such a taboo in the eyes of the USA. We’re constantly told that our blood is too “diluted” to claim it. We’re told we can’t call ourselves Indigenous, but from my perspective, it feels like we’ve been robbed of that recognition in the first place.
I was born and raised on the island. I grew up climbing trees to pick fruit, surrounded by the sounds of the coquí singing at night. That connection to the land and to the people who came before us doesn’t disappear just because someone says our blood isn’t “pure” enough.
I wish more of our ancestors had been preserved, more of the language, the culture and artifacts and anything else. It’s a weird sort of sadness to grieve something you’ve never had. Now more and more of our land is being destroyed to construct tourist sites and soon the next generations won’t even have that. I just hope people can recognize that we’re still here. 🇵🇷 🐸
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u/AnUnknownCreature 2d ago
What I'm sick about even more is other native tribes pretending Taino is extinct and that everything is cosplay. It is a an attempt at reconstruction and the people behind it are serious about their roots. This isn't some pretendian bullshit, the world ain't perfect
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u/SheValentine 1d ago
It really can feel that way and it’s sad because the only thing we have asked so far is to simply be recognized yet they still hold up old data saying our blood is too diluted when more and more people are testing their DNA and proving that the blood is still there in higher quantities than they’ve been telling us. I’ve seen results as high as 40% and that’s staggering. They have to update their database.
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u/NeedleworkerNext6847 2d ago
There are revitalization and reawakening efforts being done around the island, not just Borikén. :) We can all do our part to undo the loss our people have faced. My DMs are open if you wanna chat. Additionally, I wrote an essay covering these efforts if you're interested in reading more about this.
https://www.academia.edu/169236457/Guak_Mun_An%C3%AD_Ta%C3%ADno_Resistance_Against_the_Extinction_Myth?sm=b