Too often, Black Americans are told to trace their family trees using systems that were never built for us. From censored records to generic DNA tests, the tools we’re given rarely reflect our lived history. Rebuilding the Tree was created to shift that reality.

This guide teaches you how to spot the gaps in traditional records, decode reclassified identities, and make sense of fragmented documentation — especially for those descended from Indigenous, enslaved, or renamed people. With step-by-step guidance on using AI to process documents, transcribe old text, and organize timelines, you’ll learn how to build a family story that’s both accurate and affirming.

This is more than tech — it’s truth-telling. It’s about giving Black Americans control over how our family stories are found, recorded, and remembered. If you’ve ever felt frustrated, overwhelmed, or unseen in mainstream genealogy spaces, this book is your answer.