Slavery's diaspora pays a visit: Ghana wants the descendants of American slaves to visit, invest, and even settle in the land of their ancestors.

AuthorPolgreen, Lydia
PositionINTERNATIONAL

Millions of Africans passed through the ports of Ghana on their way to plantations in the U.S., Latin America, and the Caribbean. Now, Ghana wants its descendants to come back, and is trying to persuade them to think of Africa as their homeland--to visit, invest in, send their children to be educated, and even stay for good.

"We want Africans everywhere ... to see Ghana as their gateway home," says the country's tourism minister. "We hope we can help bring the African family back together again."

Since gaining its independence from British rule in 1957, Ghana (see map, p. 18) has become an increasingly popular travel destination for African-American tourists drawn to its rich culture and the history of slavery.

To encourage still more to come, Ghana plans to offer a special lifetime visa for members of the African diaspora and will make it easier for them to get Ghanaian passports.

The government is also starting an ad campaign to persuade Ghanaians to treat African-Americans more like long-lost relatives than as rich tourists: Many black American visitors find that Africans treat them, and even refer to them, the same way as white tourists. The term obruni, or "white foreigner," is applied regardless of skin color.

"It is a shock for any black person to be called white," says Valerie Papaya Mann, president of the...

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