Beautifully written analysis, Renee! As you said in your response to Joel, as a Black American on my first trip to The Gambia, I was looking for that connection and I did find it in some places. But, I was also othered by some folk who saw me as an American, a foreigner and not a diaspora relative. I remember going to a friend's compound and her little 4 year-old nephew saw me and yelled "Toubab, Toubab!" and ran away from me when I reached out to hold him. I've been back several times and it got better, but there were still some folk who thought I had money and tried their damnedest to divest me of my Dalasis!