Andrew Gaertner
1 min readMay 4, 2022

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Thanks for reading! I love these DNA tests, but they have their flaws. One thing I think about is how as a kid I desperately wanted to believe our family story of being part Seneca Indian. I focused on that and made it part of my story that I told myself. When I got my DNA test, it was 0.0% Native. Either the story was wrong or the test couldn't detect the trace amount of Native DNA that I had. Either way, I came to a realization that I was WHITE. So white. For me to want to be Native was a sort of denial of the 98% that is certifiably white. I have been digging into European history. I think part of it is to accept being white, own it, and then move on to accept deeper realities. Cheers! If you ever want help building your family tree, let me know.

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Andrew Gaertner
Andrew Gaertner

Written by Andrew Gaertner

To live in a world of peace and justice we must imagine it first. For this, we need artists and writers. I write to reach for the edges of what is possible.

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