Tara Roberts received a research grant from National Geographic to share the stories of Black scuba divers, Diving with a Purpose, who map slave ships in the Atlantic ocean and beyond
Tara Roberts on the cover of National Geographic. Photo: tararoberts_explorer/Instagram
Author, storyteller and explorer Tara Roberts detailed her unique travels with a group of Black scuba divers excavating the past by mapping historic shipwrecks traced back to the Trans-Atlantic slave trade.
During a recent public forum at the Bermuda College, Ms. Roberts shared her experiences from her book, ‘Written in the Waters’, where the journey led her to connect with the Diving with a Purpose group of black divers and archeologists through a research grant provided by National Geographic.
She followed the divers as they drew underwater archeology maps of historic shipwrecks found at depths off the coast of West Africa, the Caribbean and Latin and North America.
She said she discovered that uncovering stories of the past are not all about trauma and tragedy.
Necheeka Trott, Chapter President at Alpha Kappa Alpha who invited Ms. Roberts said they hoped her journey would inspire young Bermudian archeologists and explorers of the future.
