BLACK BRITS are at risk of serious mental health problems because they do not know enough about their cultural heritage, a landmark new study has revealed. 

21% of black British people surveyed said not knowing enough about their cultural background negatively affected their mental health and was the reason for feelings of loneliness, imposter syndrome and guilt. 

The research, by StoryTerrace – a memoir writing service – also found that a staggering 42% of black British respondents said they are raising their children without having enough information about their cultural heritage. 

Rutger Bruining, founder of StoryTerrace, told The Voice: “Knowing the ups and downs that your parents, grandparents and great-grandparents went through helps to give a sense of belonging.”

Mr Bruining is hoping the research “places a new importance on preserving these memories and encourages people to share them with their loved ones, which future generations will benefit enormously from.” 

The study was conducted across a nationally representative cohort of 2,090 respondents and paints a worrying picture about the link between knowledge of family history and wellbeing, for Britain’s black communities.  

Stephen Ismail Thomas,  from Hackney in east London, said that he now feels more complete since finding out more about his lineage after a holiday to Ghana. He then took an ancestry test to dig deeper into his family tree.

He told The Voice: “I got quite upset when I went to Elmina and Cape Coast Castles, even before I got in, it felt like I had been there before. 

“Going through that gate gave me a profound sense of being home and even though I am not Ghanaian, it felt like somebody somewhere in my DNA had travelled through that gate.

“So by returning home, maybe they can now rest in peace.”

A report from the UK National Commission for UNESCO in 2021, found that heritage is inextricably linked to mental health and well-being.

The report found that knowledge of your cultural background and history promotes a positive sense of self, and increases social support, solidarity and resilience. 

In 2020, Mr Thomas took an ancestry test and was keen to find out more about the Caribbean side of his family, as his mother was born on the Dutch-speaking island of Aruba, but her parents were from St Vincent and Monserrat. 

Heritage

His ancestry test revealed he is 90 per cent African, including Ghanaian DNA. He also had links to Angola, Congo, Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Sierra Leone, Senegal and The Gambia. 

Five per cent of his results pointed to indigenous Caribbean ancestry, which he believes is from his great-great grandmother who was a Carib Indian from St Vincent. 

The father-of-two says the collective results have had a positive impact on his identity after feeling unsure where he belonged growing up.

Mr Thomas is a mindfulness teacher and mentor and believes many of today’s black youth are “missing” a sense of pride because they do not fully understand their cultural backgrounds and urged the black British community to research their family history. 

The study also found similar findings for people from mixed race backgrounds, with 25% of mixed-race respondents agreeing they feel they don’t know themselves fully because they don’t know enough about their cultural heritage. 

Josina Calliste is mixed-race and was born to a white mother with Irish, English and Scottish heritage and a black father from Grenada. 

Elders

She told The Voice, her family history on her mother’s side was “well documented” but she struggled to find out about her father’s side, as much of it was passed on through “oral history and traditions.”

Ms Calliste is the strategic projects lead for Land in Our Names (LION collective), she said the biggest issue that impacted her mental health was the racism her late father had to endure. 

Her father passed away when she was a teenager, and Ms Calliste admits it has been hard to connect to her Grenadian roots. 

“It wasn’t that I didn’t know who I was, it was just hard to reach it. I didn’t go to Grenada growing up, I have only gone once,” she said. 

“But my family don’t live in Grenada anymore and I only have very distant relatives, so it is hard to connect.”

She recently became a mother for the first time and felt an ancestry test was necessary as she is keen to “build points of pride for my daughter.”

“I am waiting for the results which take about six to eight weeks and I am excited to get them back,” she said. 

Ms Caliste wouldn’t recommend an ancestry test for everyone but said those going through the process must make sure “they are ready for it.” 

Ultimately, she would like to see more families documenting and preserving their own family history.  

She said: “If you have older relatives, talk to them, our black elders can be some of the best storytellers we have. 

“Those DNA tests can’t replace the importance of talking.” 

THE DATA

Black Brits

• 25% of Black-British people feel they do not know themselves fully because they don’t know enough about their heritage
• 27% of Black-British people have little to no understanding of their cultural background
• 42% of Black-British people are raising their children without them or themselves having enough information about their cultural heritage
• 27% of Black-British people are aware of their cultural heritage but struggle to identify with it
• 21% of Black-British people say that it affects their mental health negatively not knowing enough about their cultural background, for example, breeding feelings of guilt, imposter syndrome or loneliness

Mixed-race Brits 

• 25% of mixed-race respondents agree they feel they don’t know themselves fully because they don’t know enough about their cultural heritage
• 40% of mixed-race respondents say they are an ethnic minority or of mixed-race heritage and have little to no understanding of their cultural background
• 13% of mixed-race respondents agree that they are raising their children without them or themselves having enough information about their cultural heritage
• 25% of mixed-race respondents say they are aware of their cultural background but struggle to identify with it
• 21% of mixed-race respondents say it negatively affects their mental health not knowing enough about their cultural heritage, for example, breeding feelings of guilt, imposter syndrome or loneliness

^{Source: StoryTerrace}