The 400th anniversary of virginias first General Assembly held at jamestown. Explore our nation passed on American History tv, every weekend, on cspan3. Next on American History tv, Colonial Williamsburg historical interpreters talked about portraying 18th century African American life. Colonial williamsburg hosted this event. [drumming] [speeding percussion] [drumming story sounds] great [drumming] foreign language] carter woodso [drumming] carter woodso [drumming] [drumming] [applause] [applause] good evening to you. Good evening to everyone. Kanady. Ijanice will be a guide. Were going to take a tour through williamsburg. Im going to tell you i want you to see it, look at it, think about it. Youve probably read a lot about williamsburg, the second home of the capital, jamestown being the first what i want you to think about is not in the book. It is in your heart and your mind. This is the thinking tour. We will experience performances in the building. First were going to start on the streets. I will tell you this now. If you need a bathroom or water, let me know, because i wont know until you tell me. And i do all best to make sure youre comfortable and we take care of your needs. Take your mind to the 18th century. Think about a town of less than 2000 people. Look up look up to the left and right of you now. Let your mind and your imagination go forward. This is not a town where poor people live. Less than 2000 people. This too are supposed to lean toward experiences of how africanamericans are black folks experience this town. Everybody is experiencing it in a different way. The towns 52. 4 of population being enslaved. Based on what the law says. Do nothing about color because in this audience right now, this group of people, anybody could have been free. And anybody could have been enslaved. Color is not a descriptor, not yet. Until the law says so. Of the very wealthy who live in these large homes, a lot of land and operate in the government. Think about 46 were working with their hands. The trades and the artisans. Think about native americans, not just in jamestown, but all otheroliver north america. Think about Indigenous Services coming here to pay off their labor. Somebody sponsored them then going to cut become your competition and business. What about apprentices, children with a contract to work under the tutelage of someone in the shop. Until they reach the age of majority. It is 21 for men. Because they take a little longer to percolate. And young girls 18. Then thing about the 20 free blacks here. What is it mean to be free when you have to carry papers. And the 52 percent were enslaved. How did they see this town. What a discount sound like, look likewhat did this town sound like, look like. Inhale, what it it smell like. What leg which is did you hear before they outlawed your language. Hear languages did you before they outlawed your language . Patois . Arabic,spanish, portuguese . Of thoseut the dreams people, their lives, their families. What did accosted them to build this nation. The pricehe pound, per pound for their flesh. Because there was a cost. Then i want to take your mind as we walk around. To the time of the restoration. That is how this comes about. New money, just money. Mr. Rockefeller came along. He was a savior to many. To a lot aseared well. Think of those folks who braced the idea of restoring this old town. Think of those folks who were fearful because they did not know what it meant to them, their lives, their community, their families and their businesses. Think about your life taking a , youed and 80 degree turn do not know if it is for the best, the better, the worst. You do not know what is coming. At the time of this town and those in charge decided to restore this place, there were people here whose lives and families and businesses were going to be changed. Never the same again. ,ithout any representation without lending their voice to the city. Because they were not allowed to go into the building where the meeting was held. That happened here. About the town they lived in. I want you to imagine the homes there. There were no memorials to those. Think about the businesses they struggle to bring about. Theres no plaque. How do they memorialize those people and their expenses . Nothing points toand their experiences. Nothing points to their homes, their churches come of their businesses. Certainly not in regard to their lives, their love, or the their disregarded dreams. But they were here. What did that cost them . What came from the 18th century ago that is still part of our world today, howd we look at the value of every human being . Do we just erase their history because we do not like their . Tory ech it takes courage to speak the truth, and to hear the truth. The truth has to be heard for us to progress forward we have to look backwards. Is that what dr. Farrar rockefellerwhat rockefeller wanted to do, and dr. Goodwin . Did we preserve it and save all of it. Or did we try to erase some growing up i thought that we made history. But im learning history makes us. Think, step out of our shoes into someone elses. Being to human being, even in the 18th century. Or moreas less human human than the other. Not the oppressor or the oppressed. And nothing human was foreign to either one of them. And were half this town had no power. Over half this town had no power. You look around, think about what we experienced in our world. What we all experience and what is on our news. How do we see the average virginian being treated . To the take it back specialty of this to her, what about people of color. We live in a world of great technology. Theres a disproportion number of people of color being killed on our streets today. Rights andthose founding prince pulls that we inciples printable principles that we wrote about. Eople who are all human everyone here has a mother and father. Everyone grew in their mothers heart. Yes. I do not hearing thing different. Why is it today we get a visual from cell phone, body cameras, of people being found guilty, convicted and destroyed on her streets. Without a thought. On our streets. That happened in the 18th century two. Inevel of brutality the 18th century as well. That level of bootup brutality was that something that came from slavery that was part of . Ur world today echo or ofs going to be at two discernment, what we think about the value of all human life. If we decide that one human life has no value, then arent we saying all life has no value . And if we determine that all priceless, then wouldnt that be true for everyone . Town, ilk around this want you to stop and think. Inhale deeply, open your ears. Listen for the water running in the ground. Listen for the clipclop of the horses carriage. Do they alstom the samedo they all they all sound the same. Think about the founding principle, what we can do what he walk away from the tour to make a difference, because one person represents generations. On person can make a difference. We want to pull back the layers of history. Just like you peel back the layers of an onion. Have you ever had a blooming onion . We are going to peel back the layers of history. Because in this town, it is layer upon layer. We want to reveal the lives of the priceless. Are you ready to go on this tour . Yes. Lets go. [applause] ms. Kanaday good evening everyone. Good evening everyone. My name is beth kelly, im the Vice President of education at Colonial Williamsburg. And i guess work day in and day out with janice and out of him and countless other interpreters , who present the mission of telling americas enduring story to our guest everything a day. I get the privilege tonight to welcome you to the second of our threepart lecture series, focusing on the fortis anniversary of africanamerican interpretationthe 40th anniversary of African American interpretation here at colonial waynesburg. Waynesburg. Williamsburg. The opportunity to interact and meet the founders of programs we have been caring for since 1979. They carry shared with us their vision and challenges and successes. Since 1979 we have felt upon that. Clearly withhat adam and janice doing the opening. A continue to go to story in way that reaches our modern audiences. Tonight is a present panel. We will have you looking at our current programming. Youll get snippets of that. And you will be able to hear from some current staff presenting programming throughout the historic area. Tonight,hen you leave you probably already feel this way. I think when you leave tonight. Youre going to be really quite inspired. By the interpreters that work with me day in and day out. They areourageous, dedicated to teaching our mission. And they are dedicated to making america better. I said that is our mission. Our mission is to tell americas enduring story. The story is all of the stories, which we had not told for a few years until 1979. Now we are dedicated to telling the complete story. We have such a unique opportunity. What ms. Janice is talking about is take you on a town to her. We have an opportunity to talk about a community on the edge of revolution, People Living their daily lives. At the moment they became americans. Thats what we are. And they all became americans at that moment. Yet there was inherent tension elton with becoming americans. Things like Public Wealth versus private wealth. Freedom, andus automatic tension. With that, we continue to have those tensions in our modern world today. My colleagues day in and day out talk about past, they teach about the past. Our guests into conversations about who we are today. So we can learn from the past, hopefully learn more about ourselves in the present, and hopefully build toward the promise of what is america. The promise made when we became americans in this community to hunter years ago. Over 200 years ago. Us on octoberoin 18, we will take a look of the future of africanamerican interpretation. And talk about where this goes further. We have colleagues coming in from some of our sister institutions and some of our other cultural institutions talk about where to go next . How do we continue to tell this story and reach audiences. I would encourage you to come back on october 18. Lets continue. I will introduce our moderator. A moderator has worked with us for five years. He is a native of richmond virginia, a graduate of william and mary. He has been an actor interpreter these past five years and brought to life and breathed life into free and and slaved African Americans whose stories perhaps would not have been touched if he had not come here to help breathe life into them. We are very fortunate to have , jamar on our staff jones. Please join me in welcoming him as our moderator. [applause] moderator thank you so much, beth. I appreciate that. Good evening everyone. As beth said, my name is jamar and i would bill your host and moderator for our journey tonight. Before we get started, if you have not already done so, please silence or turn off your cell phones. Onwant to be present and go this journey together. So thank you for that in advance. Once again, welcome. To 40 years of africanamerican interpretation for Colonial Williamsburg. The present. A beautiful thing. We have so much to show you this evening. With that in mind, we promised to go ahead and get started. Why . Whyquestion is, are we doing this . Why are you 40e . And why am i here . Years ago a revolution began here in williamsburg. It seems fitting the revolution would begin here in the colonial capital. This was a revolution humanity. A revolution in storytelling. The foundation and a to share the stories of all who live here in williamsburg during the 18th century. At that time, 52 of the population was black. We now say their names. And we now get to tell their stories. Before 1979, very few museums were doing so. If you are here during the past panel, as i know many of you were, on may 10, you got to hear the story of how it started. Look ate will take a where we have come since then. Youre going to see interpreters and interpretation from a few different areas of the foundation. Although we are representing quite a few, keep in mind there are still so much more offered here today. As you notice, we use a great number of techniques to tell the story of afro virginia. Earlier we experienced the rhythmic invocation of mr. Adam kanaday. [applause] as he played the drums. The drums were used for Committee Case and and healing among the enslaved and free blacks at the time. This was followed by an incredible story and introduction to the city by ms. Janice kanaday. [applause] we tell the stories of our people so they are never forgotten. At the Colonial Williamsburg foundation we used first purser firstperson character portrayals and third person techniques. Tonight you will see a sampling of both. Actor Interpreter Department uses bcm theater practices to bring to life stories of people who lived in williamsburg during the 18th century. Programs like american experiment, welcome to our guestsg, allow to experience the diverse population of 18thcentury waynesburg of free and enslaved. Eople of african descent who affected and were affected by events that transpired here. This year the raleigh taverns apollo room has been home to many museumsexpenses that highlight the africanamerican. One act plays such as across the slavery,om feed him to and joy in the morningfrom freedom to slavery, and interpretive programs such as music unbound, music was my refuge, and an american story china light on different aspects of the american experiment china light on different aspect of the African American experience. Shine a light on the africanamerican experience. The 40ths on anniversary, allow guests to take a glimpse into the life of a person in the past to get a deeper insight into their humanity. Our diverse collection of my highlights the life of enslaved people and slaveowners, providing a wide range of perspectives for guests to explore. Willieow, featuring wright as daniel, the following is the in character portion of my story, my voice, daniel. Carterss the foreman at grove plantation, a few miles outside the city of williamsburg. The year is now 1774. Daniel she said, it looks like i had the devil in me. Said, she and never seen this side of me, and she dont feel like she know me no more. I cant say i can blame my wife for san what she said to me sometimes i dont know if im going are coming. I just dont know. But this. Have been faced with some terrible situations. This is worse. The whole root of this mess is masters last. For years he has been sending me wn to fetch a man, and and i hated she had to endure such a thing. She said to me one time every time she takes that walk to masters house, every piece of her dies. As much the tears me apart, i cannot show that it affects me. But it does. You see, im a father myself. And who is to say that in a few years that my daughter is going to be safe. Or my son, for that matter. But it is not my job to have an opinion, you see. It is my job to carry out masters well. Will. A big part of what i do is just stand there and watch. And i noticed everything. And got onet nan friend out here. The women on the quarter look on her with envy. She got a new cabin, blanket, stockings. They all got some thing to say. Even a looking glass. But i just wish they would think for one moment and realized that nan did not choose this. And that master only provides these things to make herself feel better as he done trespassed on that child body. She treat that child like got the smallpox. Ivan heard one say shes lower than masters chamber pot. I member before master had gotten to her. She was innocent and inquisitive. Auntie had this laugh. You wantand she had this laugh. You ever hear somebody laugh and laugh, and youou know why . I havent heard in the long, long time. Until recently. Master brought a new man to the plantation. Covey. He comes straight from africa. Even a blind man can see that covey and nan took a shine to each other. She does not treat him like a wild animal from the jungle like other folks do. He treats nan like a delicate flower. On nt know what though andt go on between nan massar. They bring sunshine to this place. Nan did not forget about all the terrible treatment. Manual to tell covey about master and nan. Broke fromke covey the inside out. He took off running. The problem was he stayed gone too long. So master sent me and two men to go find him rate it did not take as long. He was down by the water, praying. I hear that something may do in africa. After a little backandforth, i finally talked covey into coming back to the property. I get a back and told him to go into his corded way for me because i have to talk to master and see was going to happen. Now im not worried about it. Because i know that 20 lashes is a common punishment for that offense. And i have been doing this for a long time. And i know how to swing that web and make it crack, but it is not as painful as it may look. Men going the two into the bakehouse of master. Told him what happened. The big house with master. And master told me to cut off that mans foot. Masters like a whole lot of folks around here. Hes afraid of what he dont know. Maker figure if covey trouble once, he make sure he dont do it again. I said master, you making a big mistake. Worker. S a good hes going to work faster that he could with one leg. Werer said to me if you taking care of things, he would not have run off in the first place. The problem is master found out about covey and an end, and blamed me. He went on to say they are running often doing as they please and im turning a blind eye to it. He expects so much more. Then he gave me a long luck with his smug face with a corner of his mouth turned down. He says i changed my mind. The african can keep his foot. The weight ofe the world was off his shoulders. I making my way toward the door. The two men with me already walked out. As soon as i touched the doorknob, master said, daniel. I need to talk to you. So i turned around. And he is still sitting there. With the corners of his mouth going down. With his legs crossed tight, looking me up and debt down. He says, daniel. It seems as though you and i have a problem. You see, your problem is you seem to be a mite distracted. My problem is i could use so much more. But dont you were, daniel, i have the perfect solution. You know that handsome wife of yours . I figure it would be better for us both if she was rented out for a year. That way, you can be less distracted. Ine. Can have my dont look so downtrodden daniel. I could just sell the wench. Go take care of covey, before have someone take care of you. With that im walking to go give covey has lashes. It is only around the corner, but it feels like a thousand miles away. My mouth is dry. Im sick to my stomach. My hands are sweaty. I finally make it around there. The two men already have covey with his shirt off. Tight around the tree. It is just me, the two men, and covey. Nobody is around. Im looking at covey, but all can thing about is the bad news i have to tell my wife. So one of the men has his arm extended. Trying to hand me the whip. I take it. And all i at covey, can thing about is my pro wife. And it just how much i hate this place. And i hateovey, nan, and i hate master, and i hate my self. Im supposed make things better. And i know these people. And i love them. And they love me back. And i did let them down. And manual grabs me. He said its only supposed to be 20 lashes. up him off of me. Him off me. Everybody from the quarters standing looking at me. A good 75 people. And i have been knowing them all my life. And some are looking at me like im a stranger. Some looked terrified. Some will not look at me at all. Some are crying. Angry. On covey. The only Thing Holding them up is the tree. Him andre untying helping him and he is walking. Thank the lord i do not kill him. Looks. E same anger, frustration, disbelief. Fear. Then my eyes rest on my wife. She is down on one knee. Son,as her arm around my the other around my daughter. She is looking at the ground. And i can her head see the tears sitting on her bottom eyelid. She looks me in my eyes and you got thek like devil in you. I wanted to say something. But i cannot find words. Slowly, the same folks helped her up and took them off in that direction. I went to the opposite way and ended up here. Webbing whipping covey is not the worst thing i have done in my life. Sooner or later, he is going to heal. Now i have to tell my wife, this woman, who is never said a word against anyone, that because of , becauses, my inaction of what i did, she is going to be away from her children for an entire year. And all i can hear in my head is, it look like you got the devil in you. [breathing heavily] [applause] jamar thank you to willie, once again for giving a sick limbs into the life of daniel. [applause] us a glimpse into the life of daniel. [applause] jamar now i would like to introduce our panel. Nterpreters youll find them insights like the armory, the silversmith, and the weavers. They are actual experts in the trade they do. Apprentice to journeyman, to master. They learned the ins and outs of each of their skills and can do them in the 18thcentury fashion. Much of what you see around you in the historic area, was made by one of our tradespeople. Is esent in trades today ayenda martin. [applause] jamar our orientation and sites are usually the first things visitors encounter. Their job is to orient our guests and they are the keepers of the history. The keepers of the restoration. Building andf each the people who live and work there. The foundation could not function without their contributions every day. Representing our orientation and cook iii. Edwin [applause] linwood tyson. [applause] king. [applause] and erika clark. [applause] jamar will he have a halfhour so we will jump in. Far panel we only have a little times of you can keep your succinctas sis saint as possible. The first question for everyone, what made you decide to work here and what made you decide to tell the story. Good evening everybody. What made me want to work here, i followed older Family Members working up here. I grew up working in Colonial Williamsburg. Still here. Loving it. [laughter] was an adjunct instructor at hampton university. I needed a fulltime job because adjuncts do not pal the bills. I need insurance. [laughter] my 30s and i needed something to say that i was stable. Im here because of my love of history. I had an opportunity to come to Colonial Williamsburg, share the story, and i found nothing but joy from my coworkers and from all of you out there. For the opportunity to share the story. And have a continuation of learning and sharing that story with the guests. I came here as a child. As probably a lot of people dead. Loved it. As probably a lot of people have done. I loved it. And i came back. As soon as i came, starting to see programming about african it merrick and interpretation. Africanamerican interpretation. And realizing it is not just as some of my textbooks in school had sort of had this separation of two types of history. There was history and then africanAmerican History as a section of the history book. No, this is American History. Everyone needs to be telling this, need to be told all across. So that is what coming here was very much about, very eyeopening. Actually seeing it. Hi. Inspired me to come work at Colonial Williamsburg was my love of history. As the passion of mine. Is the story i want to tell. So that is why i applied to come work here. Jamar thank you. We are glad all of you are here telling the story, for sure. , can you alltion tell me and the entire audience about an aha moment you had with a guest at any point in time during your time here at Colonial Williamsburg. There are a lot. Jamar tell is your favorite one. I enjoy talking with children about this story because there curiosity. E they definitely want to know what is going on. And they had the opportunity to ask a question. There a lot of adults that do not have the opportunity to do so. Case in point, i allow foryearolds to use some of my tools at our carpenters yard, mainly because there carpenters say that those children cannot do that work. So it is an opportunity to give somebody, give a child to say no, i can do this work. Not only now i should have more chores. And add into the help of the house. Maha moment my aha moment, was when i was in graduate school researching development and on the horn of africa. I had the opportunity to come here and work after graduating from william and mary in the 80s. Tos was a chance for me explore my africanamerican ancestors, who have contributed a lot. Especially those of us who have written virginia. My familys roots in virginia go back 300 years. The aha moment was after coming to work i found out my late father had worked here in the 1950s, at the waynesburg in. At the williamsburg in. Do somethingle to like him for once. Doing a Second Generation Colonial Williamsburg employ. I think there was something, maybe the reason im here. Recently working at randolph house was an interesting moment for me to ponder. After telling that story and many of you know the story, decisionyton making a to join the continental congress. And the brother having the opposite opportunity, to go to england. Abouted folks to think what was at risk. And what was at risk was authority, money. I also wanted to understand it in terms of the decision even made, to go to the british side. Decision yves made to go to the british side. That walk back in time that janice talked about, what would you do if you were here . Would you surrender your wealth . Would you join stepping into the unknown . R would you do what yves did . Take an opportunity for freedom. No one is offering you freedom. What choices would you make . The guests responded to me saying, you know, i never thought about that. That was my aha moment. Also at the randolph house, one of the things i rarely really love is we get to work with other departments, specifically the character interpreters. So there are many of these similar moments. When youre starting to tell the story of the enslaved people that work at the rental house, and people at the randolph house, and people nodding, im interested, you are wanting them to be there. Then you come to one particular one that comes to mind is coming into the parlor. Thereving Deirdre Jones playing, i think agnes at the time. And having her looking up at the randolphof peyton quietly as everyone comes in. And have the whole feeling of the room just drop. Just drop into place, totally listening. And then having her talk about death isn randolphs going to mean for settling debts. And of course, this could be her son. She tells this much more beautifully. Walking out of the room and having everybody wiping their eyes upstairs. Present being able to an inventory and having them look and see those names on the inventory. The beautiful ability to Work Together with the other departments and get to see, to highlight what she is doing, and having them be moved by that. And having them really get it after that. My aha moment was at the wy th house. I was talking to a lady about the africanamericans working on the property. And how lovely the garden is, that you can see out through the window there. And i start saying that, you know, the africans are skilled artisans. And i just said that garden out not out theres attending to the garden. I talked about the kitchen, the coopers. Out there on the property. We have information that there was an african descendents working as a cooper here in the city of williamsburg. And the one look at me and goes, oh my gosh, wow. That means that over half of the population built this city from the ground up. It just hit her. Like, i felt a light bulb go off. Moment. My aha she started thinking about the buildings we have today, like the white house. I mentioned the white house is built of african descendents. And she said i need to learn more about this because this is not what i was taught in school. That is my aha moment. Jamar thank you all for sharing those ahas with us. That is truly incredible. Now, moving forward with another question. Can you all tell us of a time that you had a work interaction that was difficult . And can you tell us how did it affect you . And how did it inform your future interpretations . Again, there are many. [laughter] there are many times where, especially at my yard. I work at the carpenters yard. In each others face all day. Scary anywhere you go. [laughter] when we have the time, we will there are times when we will not allay discuss buildings and waited, and lumber and stuff, we are discussing people doing the work. And chances are the people doing the work are enslaved. Not,are more often than were someone will come into our yard. And the person will ask what if my white coworkers, the question they wanted to ask about the yard. Wholetely walking past me, is also working at the yard. And i had to bring that to one of my coworkers attention. To the point where he was upset at first. But i got to the point where i could i said, listen, this is about some agency. Allow me to tell that story too. Toause both of us are going be on this site, 18 century or two first century, doing the same job with the same amount of information, the same amount of skill, the same amount of training. Putting up the same building. Ultimately, we got to the point where we are telling this human story. An aha n, that is moment. Because he never thought about it that way. He just thought this is the trade we are doing. This is the work were doing. Well, yes but we are also talking about the people doing this work. And if i had an opportunity to answer the question guest had just asked him, i may have given him or insight. Im nothing i knew more about it , just that that question could have been answered i mean. Liked for youve to have my back to allow me to answer the question. Which happens every now and then. [crowd hmmm] hmmm, so that the human thing. Jamar does that affect your interpretation . Now. I want to be open with employees and with the guests. We are all using the same information and telling it to people, you know. So we should all understand where that agency, where that equity in the story comes into play, and how important it is to a person. Jamar ok, thank you. One of my challenging moments happened to a been at the old carters grove, one of the last years it was open. A group of donors came. These were affluent donors. Ae of them wanted to make crack after i gave the interpretation of the quarters site about wanting to buy me, take me back to mississippi and, make them build a double wall cabin. A lot of people that know me are aware that im not good as my hands for much of anything. [laughter] i would try to be nice to give them a way out, by letting him know that i really am not good of my hands. And im a historian. And that would not be the nice thing. But he kept continuing with that it was best to be calm, tactful, not be angry. Eventually his wife told him to shut up. [laughter] [applause] out. At was a way i was grateful to the wife. [laughter] that ended that. At first i had to take a moment to think, because it was one of the few challenging moments. Other people learned something overly angryto get the guests ignorance change who i would become. And also many cases for what we are doing because it is so controversial talking about the suffering of the enslaved ancestors and what they had to endure. Some people may not want to hear that. If people cross the line, you would be surprised how many guests will have your back. Im always grateful i kept my cool in that particular moment. The longer he longer you spend, the more opportunities you have to run into a difficult moment. Someone said to me, arent you glad Abraham Lincoln freed you . Think Abraham Lincoln knew George Washington. That was my response to the question. People confuse the American Revolution and the civil war. The similarities is that there is a civil war in the American Revolution. People are divided. The stories are parallel. They continued to have us understand that if someone comes here that has confused different times, then it is our obligation to and share the story. Comfortable. L one thing that is a recurring aboutis when talking slavery, having people not want to talk about slavery. Even the randolph house, where we are highlighting it we should be talking about it everywhere. Just not a specific example, does not as many times having. Aying something over and over again just changing the subject. Other interpretations from the beginning, just laying it out there. Almost the numbers of how many enslaved people there were. This is a huge part of everything going on. Just highlighting it at the beginning so people are shocked by it happening. One of the most difficult moments i have is with some , being angry and upset about the issue of slavery. Rent in the winter, going through training. We want our colleagues to be comfortable. Half the population is enslaved. To hear them in the break room say, this is not something i want to deal with, i dont want to talk about it, i have been here for so many years, that is hard for me being a person of african descent. Shutot going to lie, i down, and eventually started going to some of my colleagues that i could talk to and ask them how is it i could be able to look this person in the face that i work with every day, knowing we are in the same building giving a tour about africanAmerican History, and knowing they will not talk about it. I eventually take it in stride and just make sure i continue to talk about it. That is something that is difficult for me. Thank you all for sharing those stories. This will be our final question that, inanel with these modern times, how do you make things relevant . How do you share the story . Its relevant because i personally still have to deal with some of the residue of the of theriod, some attitudes, some of the laws, some of the city ordinances. I could talk about it from nine to five. Will be confronted with it going to a grocery store. That allows me to talk about it through the daytime to the people and say look at this at your home, look at this in your city. If you feel yourself becausenging somebody they are different, understand that was going on in the 18th century. I tell a lot of guests that it is not the work that made these lives difficult, it is everything going along with the work. The bigger wound is having a Family Member separated. The bigger wound is not knowing inre you will be placed doing everything you can do to make sure that that thing doesnt happen to you. Being, here as a human somebody was thinking that very same thing. Im sitting here thinking it day , the relevance that we are. Orking on these sort of things a collective breath. Working at the randolph house for 21 years and seeing how those enslaved individuals may in spiteto wear a mask of the inhumanity they faced on a daytoday basis, not knowing what the next day will be. Will they be given to some sort of relative in the randolph or Harrison Family as a gift of this nature . Is he going to have to witness somebody like him who tends to kinds of for these things on a daytoday basis and have to wear a mask that you. Ant really show your emotions working day in and day out is a way of showing honor to the ancestors who couldnt speak for themselves. With my years going to william and mary in the 80s and being just seeing now some of the frustration many africanamericans faced today, we may still have to wear the mask. Wear the mask in the workplace, where the masking Community Mask in community meetings. And not let it overtake you. Thats a hard challenge to do sometimes. For me my goal is to remember whatever the ancestors faced is way more than the challenge im facing right now. Also what free africanamericans are facing pails to what the enslaved ancestors had to go through. They didnt have legal recourse, we have legal rights today. And just try to make things better for the next generation if at all possible. Our story is always the story about survival. When you are in front of the Public People are going to judge skin, the color of your by the words that come out of your mouth. The first adjustment is to understand that we are all different, we are all the same. We tell a story. Its the story of many. Its the story about George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. All of those stories come together. Storyhe story of a human and understanding all stories are parallel. And every person has to experience this. I want to take that person on that journey and have them understand that i am standing in front of you, we are sharing the conversation. To understandng we have more in common than you think, that our spirits are the same. Were an enslaved person, that punishment, that suffering, his personal experiences. Each generation we are telling a story. Its a story of survival. We go through something so we can make it better for the next generation. No matter how difficult it may story, once we tell the the story has been told. Now its up to our audience to listen. Search for the answers. But if you refuse to look, if you refuse to search, then you are now the same the way that you came. Do the reading, do the necessary understand that this story is a story about survival. That was beautiful. Its important to me to make sure that people who dont have experiences of having racial things happen to them or dont really believe this history is still affecting today all the that they do understand that africanAmerican History is incredibly important and being introduced to it and have a perspective shift about it that this is relevant to all of us, and that it affects all of us , not both ways experiencing unpleasant things , it is of my skin color because of this history as well and its not ok i have colleagues who experience Different Things than i do all the time. Important to have people understand, when they dont nk its relevant is i agree with everybody on the panel, what they have said with trying to compare 18thcentury i just try toay make sure we talk about uplifting stories as well. Today. Ve their families just think about them. Women, male, even their orientation in life. I try to take it into a positive and make sure we dont think about the negative when talking about our africanAmerican History and story. Thank you. Thank you so much to this entire panel. Thank you for your work, thank you for your contribution. Thank you so much. Thanks once again you all. Thank you. I have the printed that the pleasure of introducing the pleasure of introducing one of our journeyman, who is also my birthday twin. To invite him up to give a demonstration about how he tells our story in the silversmith shop. Please welcome preston jones. This way here little bit. Hello. When people come in the silversmith shop i talked to them in a 21st century idiom. Silver was money, money was silver. They shipped finished goods here. The styles would change a lot. Customers would bring in their out of style or out of date item. Down,ld melt the silver remake it into a new style. We cast these ingots of silver. They are then hammered out to sheets of silver. A very movable metal. It is the second most malleable known to humans. And they make things out of it. Its not soft nor that thin. Gold is 10 times the malleability of silver. Pewter is mostly 10. We take the silver from a sheet of silver, placing this against tools while hammering it into shape. The word smith comes from the word smite. Metals yielded wellbeing hammered. Blacksmiths work with iron or black metal. Its all hammered into shape. We move it up into a bowl, making a small bowl. It hardens when hammering it. You always work at room temperature. And cool itheat it every so often. Once its hammered into shape there are going to be a lot of. Ammer marks we will make a separate base or bottom and then we will polish it. We will polish it up here. From the ingot of silver, that represents about a days work. I can do it in 12 hours. If you are good at it it takes about 12 hours. If not it takes longer. 18thcentury was silver. Everybody had some money. Little bits of silver. I talk about Thomas Jefferson would borrow money. Thomas jefferson always bought things with credit. He never had any hard cash on him. He had real money on him. In charleston south carolina, we dont know about any silversmiths in williamsburg. Silversmith by the name of alexander petrie. Petrie would leave and go on business trips. Abraham would run the shop. He would sell things. Property. S considered when he was obsessed with all the Things Considered property and they assessed them at 400 pounds. Off the ship cost 40 pounds. At 400 pounds that was a lot of money. Finallyusinessmen he went for 800 pounds. Tothree days wages. You cut that in half, there is a quarter dollar there were two bits per quarter. He would weigh it out and make something for you. Everybody had some money. As that good . Thank you once again. Yes. Theow we have come close to conclusion of our program this evening. An exitoing to end with from a Museum Theater piece entitled from freedom to slavery. Us to explore the intermingling of three cultures, european, africanamerican and native american. This is set in early 1775 in the aftermath of dunmores war. Meet a woman with an incredible story. Is that you . Where have you been . What happened to you . How did you end up like this . Sneak we can speak freely now. Do you remember me . Elizabeth. I dont understand you, what are you saying . Not elizabeth. I am shawnee now. East. E from the yes i do remember you. How did you end up that far away . I will answer all of your questions, ill tell you everything that happened to me, but first i must ask after my mother, how is she . She still at the davenport place. Just sick with worry, not knowing if you are living or dead. How have you come to be here . Mr. Digg sold me last year. I had no idea i wouldnt be there by that night. Barely had time to say goodbye to my mama and the rest of the folks there. I dont know what i would do. You were gone a long time. Gone so long folks thought you were dead. Awful happened that caused you to leave right away . Been thinking of leaving for a time. I think anyone owned by someone else does. Designs leaving for just a little while. I was being crushed under the weight of serving misses is davenport. There was no room left for me. It was not one thing that happened. The day i left was a result of countless things that happened every day. Things that happen so often they began to feel like normal if you listened. Misses davenport sent me out there. I walked away knowing i was never coming back. I took the things i gathered and put them in a basket, poked my head through the window and said goodbye. She said dont you mean see you when you get back . Yes, maam, i said. She never liked saying goodbye. It was always see you when you get back from wherever you are going. Goodbye is so final. I didnt want to put her in any trouble by telling her what i was planning what i was doing. I got as far away as fast as i could. I traveled at night. Easily discover i was a woman. I continued on like this for days. And awakenedsleep by a man standing over me. He seemed gentle. When i haded me eaten. And how long i had been living like this. We didnt understand each others language. We understood each other. It was the first time i felt safe since i left. And i went with him. He took me to the town where he lived. He took me to a woman who became my mother. Somead lost her daughter years before. Went with her i took the place of her daughter. Did she really think of you as family . It was nothing like our masters. Many of the shawnee that were there were french or irish irish or other native groups. You are looked at the same as someone who is born shawnee. That camethose of us into the village and put us together with those of us who had lost loved ones. I lived with here for a year as her daughter. Learning everything about being shawnee. Lump a love and a warmth from her. And he helped me learn to too. He kept calling on me, spending time with me. We grew quite attached. From there it just blossomed. Hes so kind and affectionate. Married as soon as i became shawnee. Hesoon as i became shawnee. People with as bushel of corn. Afterward, we set up our own household. I never knew it was like that out there. Handsome men bringing you gifts. Ive never heard anything like this. We had a home of our own. I was elected to the womans council. Forrved as a translator merchants who came to our town. I oversaw all of our resources. N time, our family grew i gave birth to our daughter and our son. You are a mother. Where are your children . We live together as a family for many years, many good years until the war between our people and laura dunmore. Light was shed, people. Ere hurt, people were killed for the First Time Since i left, i had a bad feeling. Dunmores war. I never thought about how that would affect you. Is that why you are here . Yes, but not in the way you would think. Were you hurt, it your children killed no, the treaty was being negotiated. They wanted us returned to them. We were their slaves and they wanted us back. Told us he had reached an impasse. He told them he would not return anyone to them and they were not satisfied. I thought about chief logan. I thought about how he tried to reach peace with the virginians and in return, they murdered his entire family. Virginia gazette, he said, there runs not a drop of my blood through any human creature. I thought about our home in the lives of the people. I thought about all these things for days. Go, that if iould , our home and our people would remain safe. That my children would remain safe. O, h, elizabeth. Im sorry. At my mother i would love her always, that i would carry her in my heart. I told him that he saved my life the day he found me and i have loved him ever since. I told them i would always love them. I have prayed for their safety left. Ntly since i have not only the safety of my family, but everyone left behind. I pray for their safety, too. I hope you realize how brave you were. Miss broady says i am to help you get changed and washed up. Im sorry. I hate that i have to do this to you. Aking shawnee language] you know i dont know what you are saying. I will teach you. Eats shawnee language] it means dont worry. Dont worry. You should be proud. You left here and had a life as a free woman 10 years. You had a home and a family. No one can take that away from you. Who you will always be, even if they call you elizabeth. [speaks shawnee language] that means, i love you, my sister. I love you, my sister. [applause] thank you so much. Congratulate thank you thank you all so much, to all of you joining us this evening. Thank you to all the folks who shared your talent tonight. Thank you to all those panels for sharing your experiences. It has made beautiful evening. At least, i think so. This you for coming on journey with us. Please markets in your calendars. Come back on october 18 for our panel on the future of africanamerican interpretation. The panel and the performers will be in the lobby. Thank you for joining us. Take care and good nights. American history tv is on social media. Follow us on cspan history. Founded in 16 seven, jamestown was the first English Settlement in north america. Firstyears later, the meeting of the General Assembly. This weekend on American History tv, a threepart ceremony in jamestown, commemorating the 400 anniversary of first assembly. Here is a preview. Belief the citizens thisrginia have welcomed common law, including the newly formed Representative Assembly that will tend to the affairs of agenda for some time to come. Today, as we mark the first meeting of that General Assembly , some would say as near as may virginia tobrought the laudable form of justice and government we knew in england. I call on my good friends, the ,an that i appointed speaker for his recollections of that gathering. Speaker . Remember when you and i, along with a few rented appointedgan counsels working on this very july 30, during the torrid and sickly summer. Our first legislative session was held in the choir of the church, as it was the most convenient place we could find to sit. It is true the governor appointed me from his counsel to serve as a speaker for the whole assembly. Not because of my kinship to his wife nay, but rather i was the only member of the assembly that served as an elected lawmaker in the house of commons. I drew on my experience there to organize our new assembly and to reduce all the matters pending before it for the ease of the members. Watch the entire threepart ceremony commemorating the anniversary of the General Assembly sunday at 8 p. M. Eastern. You are watching American History tv. Penn state professor Lee Ann Banaszak reflects on the 100th anniversary of women suffrage and talked about the tactics women used to get the night at the moment passed and ratified. This took place at the historians meeting in philadelphia. Greta Lee Ann Banaszak, when was that women tried to get the vote, and what was it that triggered the movement . Dr. Banaszak that is a great question. It started in seneca falls, but