As National DNA Day approaches on April 25, the New Orleans Public Library’s City Archives and Special Collections (CA&SC) hosts its free annual Genealogy Festival on April 5.
The Black Wall Street Times interviewed presenter, Ja’el “YaYa” Gordon, to speak about the 2025 Gen Festival, the importance of community gathering, and not allowing misinformation to dissuade those interested in their heritage.
“New Orleans is a staple location, so it kind of shows reverence and respect, being that New Orleans was a huge port of slavery. And so, bringing back a lot of descendants to get to know more about their ancestors and learn their histories is extremely important,” Gordon said.
New Orleans, Louisiana, is known for its in-depth colonial history, African and Caribbean influence, and precious architectural gems.
Fortunately, HBCU Dillard University’s Professional School and Sciences Building is the home of the second annual Genealogy Festival.
Notable figures connected to the university’s historical lineage (Straight University) include Alice Dunbar-Nelson and Rodolphe Lucien Desdunes. In addition, the president of Disney Branded Television, Ayo Davis, and actor and comedian Garrett Morris attended Dillard University.
To add more importance, the CA&SC holds records from Louisiana’s Spanish colonial period (1773).
These intentional steps hope to encourage Louisianans to use public spaces and records as resources.
New Orleans Genealogy Festival invites intentional scholars
Gordon is a historian, genealogist, consultant, writer, and Louisiana Creole native, specializing in Antebellum history.
The 2025 Genealogy Festival Conference location changed due to an overflow of interested participants at last year’s festival.
As a Ph.D. Candidate in Higher Education, at HBCU Jackson State University, Gordon holds pride in the festival’s newest location.
“It brings honor to know that it is being held at the University at an HBCU. I have a devout passion and love for HBCUs. I also came from being an administrator at an HBCU previously, after graduation. So, higher education is extremely important to me for our students,” she said.
Her presentation, “Uncovering the Past: Plantation History, Enslaved Narratives, and Descendant Research,” dives deeply into archival research methods, oral history, and descendant engagement.
Gordon’s interest in genealogy and antebellum history began at an early age. Her aunt was a historian from Rapides Parish.
“We would always be in the country, and we would be passing by these homes that were old plantations, old sharecroppers’ homes, and old slave cabins that would have existed at that time.” Gordon said, “I love history, and I wanted to know so much about the homes because they looked abandoned, vacant, and looked like they had stories to tell.”
Other presenters include Gaynell Banks-Brady, Leonard Smith III, and Dr. Ryan M. Seidemann.
Collaborating with the community builds genuine connections
The Genealogy Festival is an all-hands-on-deck collaborative effort with a theme of, “Creating community and history with one another.” Gordon stresses the importance of working together to expand aligned causes and missions.
“There are so many speakers, presenters, and organizations that may have a lot of Black cultural influence, whether that is the Louisiana Creole Research Association, the Historic New Orleans Collection, or the Descendants Project. It’s so many different groups that are coming together to show how important our histories are, whether it’s Black history, Creole history, Creoles of Color history,” Gordon said.
Open to the public, residents and visitors can interact with African American and Creole of Color historians, researchers, and genealogists.
During the festival, the CA&SC plans to introduce the Housing Authority of New Orleans Digital Collection. Within the collection, viewers will witness over 300 photographs and individual annual reports from the 1940s to the 1970s.
Other participating organizations include the Louisiana Chapter of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, Algiers Historical Society, Amistad Research Center, Archdiocese of New Orleans, Archives and Records, and many more.
The Genealogy Festival helps to combat misinformation
Misinformation and disinformation cause rippling harm to Black communities. On March 23, the leading human genetics and biotechnology company, 23andMe, voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Their reasoning is to resolve liabilities and maximize their value if a sale happens
The company expects to continue business operations and remain committed to transparency around customer data privacy. They also state there will be no changes to customer data management and access.
Social media accounts on X had a field day with this news, most with assumptions and some with facts.
The bankruptcy filing raised concern among consumers and regulators over potential risks to genetic data.
As a genealogist, Gordon understands people’s apprehension and encourages informed research and meetings with reputable professionals in the field.
“It is extremely important for someone like me who rides around with DNA kits in my car to give away to people for free, um, that I educate people on not feeding into the fear mongering,” Gordon said.
The Genealogy Festival allows the community to learn more about their ancestors while exploring new information.
“I’m a firm believer in giving people their ancestors. What you know can help with certain things. Help people find lost cemeteries, help individuals learn the legality of heirship property, and things of that sort,” Gordon expressed.
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