They say that history is written by the people in power. And for centuries in the Western world, that meant that stories by and about people descending from Africa were barely touched upon in the history books. The Digital Diaspora Family Reunion (DDFR) is trying to change that. A web-based multi-media project, the DDFR encourages people with African ancestry to submit family photos, along with stories, from their own attics and shoeboxes.
The goal is to assemble a more complete picture of African American life and diasporic life in particular, as well as American life in general. The DDFR is the brainchild of Thomas Allen Harris, a documentary filmmaker, who joins us to talk about the project.
Bernice Alexander Bennett is a participant in the project. Through the DDFR, she's shared her family photos and story on our blog and with a global online community. She joins us from Silver Spring, Maryland.
Thomas Allen-Harris tells us more about the project, and we hear one listener talk about the photo he sent us.
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The show is a co-production of WNYC Radio and Public Radio International, in collaboration with New York Times Radio and WGBH Boston.
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Comments [2]
I hesitated to buy the book, SLAVE RESEARCH IN EDGEFIELD SC because there have been so many that I have in my book case that have maybe a line or to about the information I seek. But for me, $56 was worth it. I thought my gggrandma Adelaide Teague and one of her daughters my ggrandma Lucinda VANCE must have gotten those surnames from their LAST SLAVEHOLDER. Not so! On page 79 there she was with 4 of her children born before the Civil war-waiting-to be sold by PL CALHOUN to Abr. JONES. Buy this Book. I also, would not have been able to find my ancestors without the help of this book. I went line by line page by page. Adelaide's youngest was Elbert Vance 2 years old at the time of this sale in 1863. I thought about doing this for Monroe Co. Ms where Lucinda Vance was found in 1900, but YOU HAVE TO BE THERE, in Mississippi to do this.
It's very interesting to talk about the Great Migration of African American people. But sometime we should talk about the great genocide of the African American people: that 25+% of their children are killed in abortion in the US.
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