Ann Reed - Pilgrimage Tourism of Diaspora Africans to Ghana

Pilgrimage Tourism of Diaspora Africans to Ghana

Processes of globalization have led to diasporic groups longing for their homelands. One such group includes descendants from African ancestors displaced by the trans-Atlantic slave trade, who may be uncertain about their families exact origins. Traveling home often means visiting African sites associated with the slave trade, journeys full of expectations. The remembrance of the slave trade and pilgrimages to these heritage sites bear resemblance to other diasporic travels that center on trauma, identification, and redemption. Based on over two years of ethnographic fieldwork with both diaspora Africans and Ghanaians, this book explores why and how Ghana has been cast as a pilgrimage destination for people of African descent, especially African Americans. Grounding her research in Ghanas Central Region where slavery heritage tourism and political ideas promoting incorporation into one African family are prominent, Reed also discusses the perspectives of ordinary Ghanaians, tourism stakeholders, and diasporan repatriates. Providing ethnographic insight into the transnational networks of people and ideas entangled in Ghanas pilgrimage tourism, this book also contributes to better understanding the broader global phenomenon of diasporic travel to homeland centers.

Ann Reed is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of North Dakota.

Routledge Studies on African and Black Diaspora

SERIES EDITORS: FASSIL DEMISSIE, DePaul University; SANDRA JACKSON, DePaul University; and ABEBE ZEGEYE, University of South Africa

1 Sex and Race in the Black Atlantic

Mulatto Devils and Multiracial Messiahs

Daniel McNeil

2 Representing the Black Female Subject in Western Art

Charmaine A. Nelson

3 Geographies of the Haitian Diaspora

Edited by Regine O. Jackson

4 Critical Perspectives on Afro-Latin American Literature

Edited by Antonio D. Tillis

5 Afro-Nordic Landscapes

Equality and Race in Northern Europe

Edited by Michael McEachrane

Pilgrimage Tourism of Diaspora Africans to Ghana

Ann Reed

First published 2015

by Routledge

711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

and by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2015 Taylor & Francis

The right of Ann Reed to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Reed, Ann, 1972 author.

Pilgrimage tourism of diaspora Africans to Ghana / by Ann Reed.

pages cm. (Routledge studies on African and Black diaspora ; 6)

1. Heritage tourismGhana. 2. African AmericansTravelGhana. 3. GhanaDescription and travel. 4. Slave tradeGhanaHistory. 5. African diaspora. 6. Historic buildingsGhana. I. Title. II. Series: Routledge studies on African and Black diaspora ; 6.

G155.G4R44 2014

338.4'791667dc23

2013051162

ISBN13: 978-0-415-88502-7 (hbk)

ISBN13: 978-1-315-77130-4 (ebk)

Typeset in Sabon

by IBT Global.

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I would like to thank the wonderful people of Cape Coast and its surrounding communitiesincluding Ghanaians and African American expatriatesfor their generosity and kindness. Without their support and willingness to open their doors to me, I would not have been able to undertake this research. Paa Kwesi and Philo Sampson welcomed me into their home and became family to me. Paa Kwesi was instrumental in introducing me to many of the key stakeholders in Ghanas heritage tourism and served as an excellent research assistant. Many thanks go out to Paa Kwesi, Francis Aggrey, and Fred Kissi for their help in surveying the gracious people of Cape Coast about Ghanas heritage tourism. I appreciate the tour guides at Cape Coast and Elmina castles for allowing me to shadow many tours, ask them numerous questions, and facilitate data collection for my survey of Africans and people of African descent touring the castles. I must also recognize these anonymous visitors for completing surveys documenting their thoughts and feelings about visiting these sites. In addition, I want to express my gratitude to the officials of Ghana Museums and Monuments Board, Ghana Heritage Conservation Trust, Ghana Tourism Authority (formerly Ghana Tourist Board), Ghana Ministry of Tourism, W.E.B. DuBois Centre, and PANAFEST Foundation for granting me interviews. I would also like to say how much I appreciate the contributions of Central Regional traditional chiefs as well as diaspora African visitors and expatriates (both in the Central Region and beyond) towards this research. I cannot thank you all individually by name, but please know that I am grateful for your participation in my research.

I would like to express my gratitude to the US Department of Education Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Program for generously funding my 20012 fieldwork. I also need to acknowledge the University of North Dakota for supporting my 2007 fieldwork through an Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Research Award and the University of Akron Department of Anthropology and Classical Studies for sponsoring my subsequent field research in 2011. Additionally, thanks go out to the US Department of Education, Indiana University African Studies Program, Department of Anthropology, Office of International Programs, and the Center for the Study of Global Change for funding pre-dissertation research and language training in 1998, 1999, and 2000.

I would also like to thank Richard Wilk, Gracia Clark, and the two anonymous reviewers for their suggestions in writing this book. Richard Wilk deserves special recognition for his intellectual insight, encouragement, and mentoring over the years. I would like to recognize Sarah Quick, Candice Lowe Swift, Lena Mortensen, and Joy Sather-Wagstaff for their valuable insights on heritage in other ethnographic contexts. I also want to express appreciation to the University of Cape Coast departments of Geography and Tourism, Sociology and Anthropology, and Ghanaian Languages for providing research affiliation, guidance, and consultation. Finally, I must thank my familymother, father, brothers, sister, husband, and childrenfor having my back and showing me the importance of finding balance in life. I am especially grateful to have the support and intellectual companionship of Sebastian Braun, who offered valuable feedback on this book. Although the above individuals influenced this work, I am responsible for the final product, including any shortcomings.