DEAR ANNIE: I have been doing a lot of family-tree research and recently learned that my ancestors owned slaves from the early 18th century until the end of the Civil War, when my last slave-owning ancestor was shot in the head by Union troops.

My problem is, one of my brothers married an African-American woman, and they have two young daughters. I am close to my brother and his wife, and I adore my mixed-race nieces, who identify as black. My family considers me the repository of ancestral information. What on earth do I tell them? I worry that it would be terribly difficult for them to learn that their ancestors were slave owners and fought on the side of the Confederacy. Family lore, as well as official records, indicates that my ancestors didn't own many slaves and were not cruel people, but still.

I can easily talk to my nieces about those European ancestors who never came to America, many of whom were members of the aristocracy. But I feel an obligation to tell the truth about all of their relatives if they should ask.

How do I talk to them about this in a sensitive way? I know they eventually could find out on their own if they bother to search, because it's in the public record. Most of all, I want my nieces to know how much we love them, that I find the family's slavery past shameful, and that we are proud that our family has become more diverse. But it still doesn't erase what happened.


Please help. -- K.C.

DEAR K.C.: You are taking on more blame than necessary for your family's past. Talk to your sister-in-law. Tell her what you discovered in your research, and add what you told us -- that you love your brother's family and find your slavery past shameful. Should these nieces someday become interested in their family history, they will want this information, warts and all, and are entitled to have it. The most important thing is to reassure them of your love.
