LeVar Burton discovers he’s descended from Confederate soldier: ‘There’s some conflict roiling inside of me’

LeVar Burton learned his family tree includes a Confederate soldier, but says this could be his entry point to communicate with white America. On the PBS series “Finding Your Roots,” host Henry Louis Gates Jr. explained to Burton that the show uses “every tool available,” including a genealogist who combed through paper trails stretching back hundreds of years, and DNA experts to compile a thorough history into what the series calls a “book of life.” Not knowing much about his extended family, Burton said, “You grow up with just blanks, right? “The two major commercial DNA tests almost never have tested an African American who was 100% sub-Saharan African,” Gates told Burton. “We all have white ancestors.” “There’s some conflict roiling inside of me right now,” Burton responded. “But oddly enough, I feel a pathway opening up.. Knowing what I know about the history of this nation, I’ve wanted, especially in this current time frame, I believe that as Americans we need to have this conversation about who we are and how we got here.” Burton said that Americans are so polarized politically and racially, “so I’ve been looking for an entry point to talk to white America.