Rediscovering Roots: A Journey to Bunce Island during Black History Month

As we honor Black History Month, I reflect on a profound journey that not only deepened my understanding of the African diaspora but also connected me with a pivotal part of history. This story begins on February 8th, 2020, when I, alongside my daughter Destiny, our friends Kadie, Heidi, Emmanuel, and Alimamy, embarked on a trip to Bunce Island from our lodge in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Despite my initial apprehension and a somewhat tumultuous boat ride, the experience that awaited us on Bunce Island was nothing short of transformative.

Bunce Island, now a place of haunting beauty with remnants of a thriving slave fort, once stood at the heart of a significant historical narrative. The tour guide’s initial words about the island – its history, the companies that operated there, and its namesake – set the stage for a deeper revelation. He revealed how Bunce Island was crucial in shipping enslaved people, specifically to the Carolinas and Georgia in the United States, due to their expertise in cultivating Carolina Gold rice. This rice variety was America’s first commercial rice and highly sought after, inadvertently spurring an increased demand for enslaved labor.
This revelation hit close to home. My mind raced back to my grandparents from Georgia and South Carolina and the rice porridge my mother religiously prepared every Sunday. The narrative I grew up with in America starkly contrasted with the truth revealed on Bunce Island. We were taught a history that portrayed our ancestors as uncivilized, yet here I stood, where skilled, cultured individuals were torn from their homeland.

The emotional pinnacle of this journey came in August 2021 when my African-Ancestry DNA results linked me directly to a Mende woman from Sierra Leone, one of the thousands taken during the Maafa. This connection to Bunce Island was not just historical but personal, tracing my lineage back to this very soil.
In conclusion, Bunce Island is not just a tourist spot; it’s a bridge to our past. It stands as a poignant reminder of the skills, cultures, and lives of those who were forcibly removed from their homes. It’s a place where one can walk in the final footsteps of their ancestors, completing a circle that was tragically left open centuries ago.
So, as we celebrate Black History Month, let’s remember places like Bunce Island. They’re not just relics of the past but keys to understanding our present and shaping a more informed future.