My identity and how it has influenced me to go to Ghana

I am a bi-racial Black woman who grew up, and until going to college, had always lived in Dallas, Texas. There are many reasons why I decided to go on this trip and my identity has a lot to do with many of them. I wanted to go on this trip so that I could experience culture outside of America and learn about how people from another country live, while learning about myself at the same time. Not unlike many other African Americans, I am not able to trace my ancestry back to Africa, so I do not know the exact location that my ancestors are from, but I believe simply visiting a part of Africa would give me an understanding of a part of my history and culture that I did not know. I believe it is important to form bonds with other countries and experience different cultures because it provides perspective and understanding. Due to my families finances, I have not had many opportunities to travel, so I am excited to make Ghana my first trip out of the country. I have a personal interest in education reform in the United States, so initially I was planning to work on the mentoring project, but feminism is also important to me and I've recently decided to spend my time in Ghana working to strengthen the women's community. I believe it is important for women to form bonds with each other, so that we are able to encourage each other and keep one another strong and I am looking forward to helping Ghanaian women do just that. Not only do I hope to impact someone's life on this trip, but also to be impacted. I am hoping to grow as an individual and learn things while I am on this trip that I can carry with me for the rest of my life.