Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors obtain Guinean citizenship after DNA ancestry checks

[ad_1] Makuochi Okafor BBC Africa

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/0e14/live/db898020-ee19-11f0-8692-012f383b8e06.jpg.webp" loading="eager" alt="Mohamed Finando / Oxygen Africa Meagan Good (R) in a black-and-white jumpsuit and brown fedora, and Jonathan Majors (L) in a yellow jumper and beige slacks hold hands as they pose for the camera in front of a sign that reads: "Programme Simandou 2040." A Guinea flag hands furled on the far right of the frame" class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> Mohamed Finando / Oxygen Africa Husband and spouse film stars Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors have travelled to Guinea, the place they've been granted citizenship after tracing their ancestry to the West African nation by DNA testing.

Majors, a star of Creed and Ant-Man, mentioned changing into residents would permit the couple to "bridg[e] the hole" and produce collectively their tales as entertainers and members of the African diaspora.

"We simply need to say thanks a lot," added Good, finest identified for the movie Suppose Like a Man, who mentioned it was her first go to to Guinea.

Their citizenship ceremony was much like different initiatives within the area to encourage folks of African descent to reclaim their heritage and spend money on the continent.

The occasion - a non-public cultural ceremony organised by the ministry of tradition - befell at a vacationer and cultural centre, Gbassi Kolo, on Friday.

Djiba Diakité, minister and chief of employees of the presidency, introduced the passports to the 2 actors on behalf of President Mamadi Doumbouya.

Beside him stood Basic Amara Camara, minister and secretary-general of the presidency.

Company have been handled to a sequence of conventional dance and music performances, together with on the djembe - a drum that attracts many foreigners to Guinea to study its rhythms.

Good, 44, and Majors, 36, started courting in Could 2023 and tied the knot final yr.

They married following a turbulent interval in Majors' life. In 2024, he was sentenced within the US to probation for assaulting his ex-girlfriend, British choreographer Grace Jabbari. He was mandated to finish a 52-week home violence intervention programme.

The actors landed at Conakry's Gbessia Worldwide Airport within the early hours of Friday morning and have been welcomed with nice fanfare by officers and musicians.

Throughout their keep in Guinea, the pair are scheduled to tour Boké, a coastal area with historic slave commerce websites. It's not clear in the event that they plan to spend money on or transfer to Guinea.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/7203/live/c2400390-ed7f-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Mohamed Finando / Oxygen Africa US actors Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors being welcomed at Conakry Gbessia International Airport. They were presented with kola nuts. Kola nuts hold deep cultural significance in West Africa, symbolising hospitality, peace, friendship, and life. They are used in crucial social rituals like weddings, funerals, and negotiations. The couple are smiling, chatting and wearing relaxed clothing." class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> Mohamed Finando / Oxygen Africa Forward of the ceremony, the celebs have been introduced with kola nuts - a culturally symbolic reward of welcome

In recent times, a number of celebrities have taken up citizenships of nations in Africa.

It largely started in 2019 when Ghana launched "The 12 months of Return", inviting these with African heritage to return residence and make investments. Probably the most outstanding stars to take action was Stevie Surprise in 2024.

Different notable examples have been US singer Ciara, who took Beninese citizenship final yr, and Hollywood actor Samuel L Jackson, who acquired a Gabonese passport in 2020.

Guinea itself has an extended historical past of welcoming activists and other people from the African diaspora.

Within the Nineteen Sixties, South African singer Miriam Makeba and her husband, US civil rights activist and Black Panther chief Stokely Carmichael, moved to Guinea.

Makeba had been made stateless for her opposition to apartheid and after her marriage to Carmichael, who popularised the slogan "black energy", her US visa was revoked.

She was handled as an honorary Guinean citizen and cultural ambassador, whereas Carmichael, who took the title Kwame Ture, remained in Guinea even after their divorce, dying there in 1998.

Guinea has expertise political turmoil lately - and below the junta that seized energy in 2021 the nation has develop into much less open to dissent.

Coup chief Gen Mamady Doumbouya restricted the media and suppressed protests.

The nation has not too long ago returned to civilian rule following elections final month, gained by Doumbouya with 87% of the vote.

In contrast to different international locations within the area which have skilled latest coups, Guinea has maintained relations with Western governments, notably France.

The nation is wealthy in minerals, together with bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold and uranium, but its folks stay among the many poorest in West Africa.

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<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/0a19/live/7c722dc0-089d-11ef-b9d8-4f52aebe147d.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Getty Images/BBC A woman looking at her mobile phone and the graphic BBC News Africa" class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> Getty Pictures/BBC [ad_2] Source link