This Charleston Experience Connects Travelers to Gullah Geechee Culture Through Crabbing

"You know, in Charleston, crabbing went back to enslaved days because the slaves weren't given enough rations to feed their families. So going to the edge of the water and throwing a cast net and putting chicken on a string was a way to get food to really be able to provide for your family."

"My culture is connected to this water right here. So when I started getting my relationship with the water, that's when my real connection to my culture came."

"All my family, everybody, that's what we sound like. But my mom wouldn't let me speak it. People said, 'if you speak Geechee, you're ignorant,' a stigma her mother hoped to shield her from."

Tia Clark grew up in Charleston, South Carolina, surrounded by the Geechee language, which her mother discouraged due to stigma. An illness at 37 prompted her to embrace crabbing, a tradition linked to her ancestors' survival. This activity deepened her connection to her culture and heritage. Now, as a member of the Explorer's Club, she shares her Gullah Geechee roots through her Casual Crabbing with Tia experiences, educating tourists and students about her family's history and the significance of crabbing in the Lowcountry.

Read at Travel + Leisure