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[Garry Lumbers]
This is where it starts.
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[Tara Roberts]
Altevese, Garry, Cassandra,
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and Delisha are descendants
trying to take their ancestors
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home to West Africa
for the first time
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in over 100 years.
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This is an opportunity
to reckon, to heal...
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[Altevese Rosario] Oh my God.
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[Tara Roberts] ...to honor.
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[Altevese Rosario] Is the
king saying my ancestor was
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not sold into slavery?
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[Tara Roberts] This is
absolutely universal.
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This is all of our history.
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And that just feels
really powerful to me.
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[Garry Lumbers]
Come on! Come on!
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[clapping rhythmicly]
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[♪ whimsical music plays]
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[Tara Roberts]
Diving With a Purpose
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is a non-profit group.
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It's made up of predominantly
Black scuba divers who mainly
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have a passion for scuba diving.
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[Tara Roberts]
How do you want to start?
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[Tara Roberts] But the part of
their work that I most connect
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to is this workaround
diving for slave shipwrecks.
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There were approximately
36,000 voyages that brought
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12.5 million Africans
to the Americas.
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[Tara Roberts] We are
going to measure this wreckage.
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[Tara Roberts] Most often,
we think of the people on
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these slave ships as cargo,
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as like faceless statistics...
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[Crew] Welcome back!
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[Tara Roberts]
...but they were people.
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They were mothers,
daughters, husbands, sons.
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{\an8}They were princes.
They were kings.
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{\an8}They were farmers, dreamers,
scientists, teachers.
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They were all of that,
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but we don't often
see them in that way.
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[Tara Roberts] And the
Clotilda is actually the only
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one of those ships to
have been found intact.
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This work to recover
that history is hard.
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But as I met descendants of
the ancestors on the Clotilda,
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and I saw the strength that
they got from connecting to
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that past, it's like, well,
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if they can do it,
maybe I can.
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Alright, y'all.
So where are we?
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{\an8}[Altevese Rosario] We are at
the monument of our ancestor,
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{\an8}Kossola Oluale.
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{\an8}Whose slave name
was Cudjo Lewis.
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{\an8}We're going to take some
soil in order to represent him
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{\an8}and take him home.
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[Tara Roberts] Home for
Kossola was near the kingdom of
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Dahomey in West Africa,
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within what is
now known as Benin.
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In 1860, he was captured by
members of the Dahomey tribe,
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sold into slavery,
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and forced onto the last
known slave ship to America,
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the Clotilda.
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Kossola was only 19 years old.
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[Cassandra Lewis]
Kossola said that when
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he went onto the ship,
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there was a man
standing there, and he said,
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"Take your clothes off.
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You won't need this
where you're going."
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{\an8}And that right there,
taking his country cloth,
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{\an8}it just took
something out of him.
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[Tara Roberts] Kossola and
109 captive Africans were
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confined aboard the Clotilda,
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all chosen and among
the last to enter the world
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of chattel slavery
in America.
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Under this brutal system,
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humans were
reduced to mere property,
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treated like cattle,
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and perpetually owned
under laws designed to
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enforce their degradation.
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Kossola, renamed Cudjo Lewis
and those aboard the Clotilda
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endured and
persevered through this
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cruel system for almost
five years in Mobile, Alabama,
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until they were freed in 1865.
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Their first wish?
To return to Africa.
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[Altevese Rosario] Their
plan was to work and to save
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their money and return home.
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[Cassandra Lewis] But when
they go to pay for the ticket,
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the price kept rising.
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[Tara Roberts]
Unable to return home,
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the survivors of the
Clotilda brought home here.
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They purchased land from
their former enslaver and
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called it Africatown.
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They built a community
complete with houses,
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a school, and a church,
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establishing the first town
in the United States
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to be founded, controlled,
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and continuously occupied
by African Americans.
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[♪ uplifting music plays]
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Here, they could celebrate
their culture and preserve
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their memories of
home for generations.
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Cudjo, the Clotilda's
last male survivor,
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married, raised children,
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and passed down
his life story with a
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hand-drawn map
showing the path home.
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{\an8}[Cassandra Lewis] His last
words were that he wanted
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{\an8}to go back to Africa.
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{\an8}He wanted to see his family.
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{\an8}He always say, I
want to see my mom.
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{\an8}I'm looking for a feeling when
we hit Africa for him to say,
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{\an8}"I'm home.
You did a good job."
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{\an8}[Tara Roberts] Altevese,
what are you feeling?
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[Altevese Rosario] You mean,
what's coming back up?
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[laughs]
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I'm very emotional because
this was what he always wanted,
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and we get to be
the ones that do it.
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That's a big deal.
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Because this is huge.
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This is something that has been
100-plus years in the making.
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- We got it. Yeah.
- Yeah.
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Remind me of that
when we're there.
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{\an8}[Garry Lumbers] Cause
we keep thinking that--
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{\an8}- It's just us.
- It's just us.
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{\an8}- Yeah.
- But we're not in this alone.
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[Altevese Rosario] No.
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So, we are gathering
soil from Cudjo's memorial
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to take back to Africa.
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In the African tradition,
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it is the women who
are to take and the men
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who are to give.
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[Tara Roberts] It's a ritual
that serves throughout time,
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and it feels like that's what
we're about to do in Benin.
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This is something
for the ancestors,
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it's something for us,
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and it's something
for future generations.
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Delisha, does this exist for
you in your body anywhere?
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[Delisha Marshall] For me,
I'm not blood-related to Cudjo,
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but we are family,
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and that was the
spirit of Africatown.
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[Tara Roberts]
Delisha's ancestor was
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also on the Clotilda,
a royal prince named Gumpa.
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[Delisha Marshall]
People are like, oh my God,
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you're royalty,
and I'm like, I'm really not.
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[Laughs]
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It would be nice,
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but there's a very
ugly side of that story.
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[Delisha Marshall] Gumpa was
a member of the royal family.
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He was related to the
king at the time, Glele.
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[Tara Roberts] The same
king who ordered the raid
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on Cudjo's village.
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[Delisha Marshall] Gumpa did
something that offended him,
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{\an8}and the royal family
wanted to get rid of him,
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{\an8}and that's how he ended
up on the Clotilda.
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[Tara Roberts]
Betrayed by his own family,
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Gumpa emerged as a
beloved leader of Africatown,
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where part of his legacy
still stands today.
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[Delisha Marshall] The
last structure remaining from
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that time is Gumpa's chimney.
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It's a symbol of how the people
of the Clotilda came together.
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Yesterday, I was able to place
a couple of flowers out there,
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say thank you for
all the things that
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they endured and survived,
and dig up some of the soil from
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around the chimney.
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And I plan on taking
that back with me to Benin,
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and hopefully,
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I can leave
some of it in the palace.
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[Tara Roberts] On some level,
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it's just you
honoring your grandfather.
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[Altevese Rosario] This is
our way of giving back.
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[Tara Roberts] By them
fulfilling the long-ago request
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of their ancestor
and taking him home,
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I think it heals
something for all of us
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who will never
be able to do that.
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Before this reverse
journey begins,
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the descendants wish to
pay their respects to all the
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people aboard the Clotilda,
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whose stories may have
been lost but never forgotten.
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[Cassandra Lewis]
I was a little girl,
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and my father would
make us repeat the ship and
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the year that they
came over and over again.
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[Tara Roberts] When the
Clotilda arrived in 1860,
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importing enslaved
people into the U.S. had
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been illegal for decades.
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So, after the captain
offloaded everyone,
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he burned and sank the
ship to destroy any evidence.
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[Cassandra Lewis] One day,
I got tired, and I said,
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"Dad," I said,
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"why do we keep doing
this over and over again?"
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He say, "They think we don't
know what we saying because we
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don't have proof of a ship,"
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he say, "but it's out there,
and you always remember."
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[Tara Roberts] For 159 years,
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the only evidence of
Clotilda's illegal voyage was
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the firsthand accounts
of its survivors.
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Then, in 2019, a
discovery was made.
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[Dr. James Delgado]
Yes, it is Clotilda.
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[Cassandra Lewis] So all
of us said we don't have to
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pass it on to our
kids the way he did it.
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We can talk about it
because we got proof.
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[Delisha Marshall] We can
throw these flowers as a way
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to say thank you
to the ancestors and
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ask them for their protection
as they watch over us.
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For the ancestors!
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[Descendants] To the ancestors!
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[Garry Lumbers]
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We're going home.
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[Delisha Marshall]
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[Cassandra Lewis] I think it's
going to be really emotional.
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And I just want to take it in.
I want to feel it in my heart.
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I think it'll make me whole.
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[Delisha Marshall] Going back
to Benin having a conversation
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with descendants of King Glele,
we are distantly related,
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so that brings up a whole
other set of mixed emotions.
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[Altevese Rosario] The hope is
that whomever we encounter on
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the other side is going
to be just as encouraged,
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just as joyful to
connect with us.
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[Garry Lumbers] As we are
trying to connect with them.
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[Tara Roberts] This
is an opportunity and
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an experience to reckon,
to heal, to honor,
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and that just feels
really powerful to me.
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♪ ♪
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[Tara Roberts] Benin, a small
gem in the heart of West Africa.
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Everywhere in this
vibrant country,
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echoes of its past are palpable:
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00:13:18,172 --> 00:13:21,175
ancient kingdoms, revolutions,
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and independence
from France since 1960.
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00:13:26,764 --> 00:13:31,894
And the people welcomed us so
warmly as soon as we arrived.
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[Garry Lumbers]
This is where it starts.
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{\an8}[Delisha Marshall] I'm excited!
We're here!
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{\an8}[Altevese Rosario] We're home.
We're, we're officially home.
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[Airport Personnel]
Welcome. Welcome.
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00:13:47,201 --> 00:13:51,580
[speaking in French]
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[Ada] He says, "Welcome to
the land of your ancestors."
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[Descendants]
Thank you. Thank you.
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[Airport Personnel]
Welcome! Have a nice journey!
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00:14:01,507 --> 00:14:02,591
[Garry Lumbers]
There's so many of us,
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{\an8}like my mom, my grandma,
my grandfather.
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We're not with only us.
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You know, we're
bringing everybody.
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[♪ African music playing]
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[Tara Roberts] We're
on our way to Ouidah,
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00:14:24,113 --> 00:14:27,157
a coastal town that has
remarkably transformed from
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00:14:27,241 --> 00:14:30,703
the busiest slave market in
West Africa to the spiritual
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00:14:30,786 --> 00:14:32,621
heart of Benin.
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Cudjo and Gumpa's
last steps on African soil
241
00:14:36,584 --> 00:14:38,627
were here in 1860,
242
00:14:38,711 --> 00:14:41,922
and it's where our
reverse journey begins.
243
00:14:43,757 --> 00:14:49,972
[singing in native language]
244
00:14:58,689 --> 00:15:00,357
Standing on the shore,
245
00:15:00,441 --> 00:15:03,193
the weight of the
horror and injustices that
246
00:15:03,277 --> 00:15:08,073
awaited those torn from
their homeland washed over us.
247
00:15:17,499 --> 00:15:23,422
♪ ♪
248
00:15:29,887 --> 00:15:31,805
[barking]
249
00:15:41,357 --> 00:15:43,817
[Altevese Rosario] He was
being stripped from his home.
250
00:15:43,901 --> 00:15:46,111
He didn't know
where he was going.
251
00:15:46,195 --> 00:15:48,656
He didn't have any
family with him.
252
00:15:49,073 --> 00:15:52,993
He was being taken away
from everything that he knew
253
00:15:53,077 --> 00:15:57,581
{\an8}and that he loved,
never to see them again.
254
00:16:01,585 --> 00:16:03,420
[Delisha Marshall]
They stole his family,
255
00:16:03,504 --> 00:16:07,299
and I'm mad as hell
that they did that.
256
00:16:07,633 --> 00:16:11,971
It took us 162 years
to get back here.
257
00:16:23,399 --> 00:16:26,443
[Tara Roberts] They say
that the Atlantic is churning
258
00:16:26,527 --> 00:16:29,697
with these lost souls.
259
00:16:30,155 --> 00:16:34,451
1.8 million Africans died
in the middle passage.
260
00:16:34,535 --> 00:16:39,289
That's the crossing from
Africa to the Americas.
261
00:16:39,748 --> 00:16:44,586
{\an8}Just in the crossing,
1.8 million people died.
262
00:16:49,717 --> 00:16:52,845
Overlooking Ouidah Beach
is a monument that represents
263
00:16:52,928 --> 00:16:55,848
The Door of No Return.
264
00:16:57,099 --> 00:16:59,309
There are many such "doors."
265
00:16:59,393 --> 00:17:03,439
Sometimes literal doors.
Other times, open spaces.
266
00:17:09,403 --> 00:17:13,699
They exist up and down
the coast where slavers from
267
00:17:13,782 --> 00:17:17,578
the Americas and Europe
loaded their ships with people
268
00:17:17,661 --> 00:17:18,871
who had been captured,
269
00:17:18,954 --> 00:17:22,124
kidnapped, bought, and sold.
270
00:17:32,134 --> 00:17:34,678
Cudjo and Gumpa came
from different parts of the
271
00:17:34,762 --> 00:17:37,056
warring Dahomey empire.
272
00:17:37,139 --> 00:17:40,684
One captured in a raid and
sold as a prisoner of war.
273
00:17:40,768 --> 00:17:43,520
The other betrayed by
his relative, the king,
274
00:17:43,604 --> 00:17:45,939
and given away as a gift.
275
00:17:46,023 --> 00:17:48,150
But today, they
return together,
276
00:17:48,233 --> 00:17:51,820
carried symbolically
by their descendants.
277
00:18:03,791 --> 00:18:08,921
So we're here in Ouidah in
the Village of Zoungbodji,
278
00:18:09,004 --> 00:18:12,966
and this is called
the Tree of Return.
279
00:18:13,050 --> 00:18:16,512
And that just means that
captive Africans would walk
280
00:18:16,595 --> 00:18:22,309
around it three times so that
their souls would remain here
281
00:18:23,185 --> 00:18:27,689
even though their bodies
were being taken far away.
282
00:18:32,236 --> 00:18:34,029
[Altevese Rosario]
We're returning.
283
00:18:34,113 --> 00:18:37,241
We're returning them.
284
00:18:38,242 --> 00:18:40,494
[Delisha Marshall] Yeah,
they're physically not here,
285
00:18:40,577 --> 00:18:43,288
so we're returning
on their behalf.
286
00:18:43,372 --> 00:18:45,791
{\an8}[Cassandra Lewis] To me,
it feels like getting closer
287
00:18:45,874 --> 00:18:47,376
{\an8}to their soul.
288
00:18:47,459 --> 00:18:49,169
[Garry Lumbers] When I first
came, I didn't feel anything.
289
00:18:49,253 --> 00:18:51,171
But then, when I put
everybody's hand together,
290
00:18:51,255 --> 00:18:52,840
then I was just like, 'bam'.
291
00:18:52,923 --> 00:18:55,801
It just started to clicking.
292
00:18:58,679 --> 00:18:59,888
[Tara Roberts]
Can I touch it, too?
293
00:18:59,972 --> 00:19:01,890
[Delisha Marshall]
Yeah, get in here.
294
00:19:01,974 --> 00:19:03,934
This is your ancestors, too.
295
00:19:04,017 --> 00:19:06,311
This is everybody's ancestors.
296
00:19:06,395 --> 00:19:09,439
[Tara Roberts] You're right.
You're right.
297
00:19:09,857 --> 00:19:14,820
I know that at least 20%
of my blood comes from Benin.
298
00:19:14,903 --> 00:19:16,113
So you're right.
299
00:19:16,196 --> 00:19:17,197
Like this is--
300
00:19:17,281 --> 00:19:18,282
[overlapping chatter]
301
00:19:18,365 --> 00:19:19,366
Me, too.
302
00:19:19,449 --> 00:19:20,659
[Altevese Rosario] This
is you now communing
303
00:19:20,742 --> 00:19:21,743
with your ancestor.
304
00:19:21,827 --> 00:19:24,538
- Wow
- Absolutely. Yeah.
305
00:19:24,621 --> 00:19:25,873
[Tara Roberts] When I
started this journey,
306
00:19:25,956 --> 00:19:27,708
I was like, does
it really matter?
307
00:19:27,791 --> 00:19:29,543
Do your ancestors,
I don't know,
308
00:19:29,626 --> 00:19:32,254
does it really
make a difference?
309
00:19:32,337 --> 00:19:33,839
And I think it does.
310
00:19:33,922 --> 00:19:36,758
I think knowing who you
are gives you strength,
311
00:19:36,842 --> 00:19:37,926
gives you confidence.
312
00:19:38,010 --> 00:19:41,180
And that is absolutely
something that's universal.
313
00:19:41,847 --> 00:19:45,392
All right, I know that you have
a ritual that you want to do,
314
00:19:45,475 --> 00:19:48,395
so I am going to step
away and let you do it.
315
00:19:49,229 --> 00:19:50,564
[Delisha Marshall] Billy Adams.
316
00:19:50,647 --> 00:19:52,274
[Descendants] Ashe (Amen)
317
00:19:52,357 --> 00:19:53,358
[Delisha Marshall] John Africa.
318
00:19:53,442 --> 00:19:55,444
[Descendants] Ashe (Amen)
319
00:19:55,527 --> 00:19:57,196
- Lancer Africa.
- Ashe.
320
00:19:57,279 --> 00:19:59,781
[Delisha Marshall] We are
calling the names of those
321
00:19:59,865 --> 00:20:02,534
that are known that have
departed on the Clotilda.
322
00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:06,413
And we tried to use as many
African names as we could.
323
00:20:06,955 --> 00:20:09,291
- Omolabi
- Ashe.
324
00:20:09,374 --> 00:20:11,835
[Tara Roberts] As
they read the names of
325
00:20:11,919 --> 00:20:13,587
Clotilda survivors out loud,
326
00:20:13,670 --> 00:20:16,381
I thought about what
all the captured Africans who
327
00:20:16,465 --> 00:20:19,968
walked around this tree
were forced to leave behind.
328
00:20:20,427 --> 00:20:22,054
[Delisha continues reading]
329
00:20:22,137 --> 00:20:25,015
[Altevese Rosario] When you
separate people from everything
330
00:20:25,098 --> 00:20:26,099
that looks like them,
331
00:20:26,183 --> 00:20:28,227
from everything
that sounds like them,
332
00:20:28,310 --> 00:20:30,896
they lose their entire self.
333
00:20:30,979 --> 00:20:32,105
[Descendants] Ashe.
334
00:20:32,189 --> 00:20:33,523
- Lottie Dennison.
- Ashe.
335
00:20:33,607 --> 00:20:35,609
- Samuel Johnson.
- Ashe.
336
00:20:35,692 --> 00:20:37,486
- Anna Keeby.
- Ashe.
337
00:20:37,569 --> 00:20:39,071
- Gumpa.
- Ashe
338
00:20:39,154 --> 00:20:42,199
- Kossola Oluale.
- Ashe.
339
00:20:48,997 --> 00:20:55,754
[♪ African music plays]
340
00:20:56,380 --> 00:20:59,925
[Tara Roberts] We've been
invited to an Egungun ceremony,
341
00:21:00,008 --> 00:21:03,303
a West African dance tradition
that manifests the spirits of
342
00:21:03,387 --> 00:21:07,975
ancestors for remembrance,
celebration, and blessings.
343
00:21:15,315 --> 00:21:19,361
♪ ♪
344
00:21:19,444 --> 00:21:21,738
The timing was perfect.
345
00:21:21,822 --> 00:21:25,075
The descendants of Cudjo
and Gumpa are embarking on
346
00:21:25,158 --> 00:21:27,744
the next phase of
their reverse journey,
347
00:21:28,078 --> 00:21:30,664
the slave market.
348
00:21:32,249 --> 00:21:34,751
[Alex Amoussouvi] Ouidah
was one of the most important
349
00:21:34,835 --> 00:21:38,297
slave towns on the
west coast of Africa.
350
00:21:38,380 --> 00:21:40,716
When the slaves
were brought from the
351
00:21:40,799 --> 00:21:43,218
{\an8}different wars that existed,
352
00:21:43,302 --> 00:21:45,387
{\an8}they were brought
to the slave market,
353
00:21:45,470 --> 00:21:48,307
{\an8}chosen by different
slave traders before they
354
00:21:48,390 --> 00:21:51,101
{\an8}would board the ships.
355
00:21:51,977 --> 00:21:57,524
{\an8}[Tara Roberts] So I'm just
imagining Cudjo on the platform.
356
00:21:57,607 --> 00:21:59,818
{\an8}[Altevese Rosario] I can
only imagine, first of all,
357
00:21:59,901 --> 00:22:02,446
{\an8}how degrading it
is because you're in front of
358
00:22:02,529 --> 00:22:04,948
{\an8}a crowd of people,
359
00:22:05,032 --> 00:22:07,451
{\an8}and you have these
strangers poking and prodding.
360
00:22:07,534 --> 00:22:08,660
{\an8}You don't know
what they're saying.
361
00:22:08,744 --> 00:22:10,037
{\an8}You don't know what's happening.
362
00:22:10,120 --> 00:22:11,330
[Tara Roberts] Yeah.
363
00:22:11,413 --> 00:22:14,207
Can you tell us a little bit
about Gumpa, Delisha?
364
00:22:15,625 --> 00:22:16,960
[Delisha Marshall] He
was here at the market.
365
00:22:17,044 --> 00:22:19,546
{\an8}He looked very dignified,
very beautiful,
366
00:22:19,629 --> 00:22:21,840
{\an8}dark brown chocolate skin.
367
00:22:21,923 --> 00:22:25,469
As I understand it, Gumpa
was given away as a gift.
368
00:22:26,553 --> 00:22:30,640
[Alex Amoussouvi] Almost
18,000 Africans were taken
369
00:22:30,724 --> 00:22:33,602
from the port of Ouidah
every year.
370
00:22:33,685 --> 00:22:36,897
And that is why we
consider it as a genocide.
371
00:22:36,980 --> 00:22:38,857
It is a genocide.
372
00:22:46,198 --> 00:22:49,576
[Tara Roberts] The next stop
on our journey is the place
373
00:22:49,659 --> 00:22:53,997
where Cudjo was held
before he came here.
374
00:22:54,081 --> 00:22:56,541
That was a barracoon.
375
00:22:57,084 --> 00:23:00,337
Barracoons were outdoor
stockades where captured
376
00:23:00,420 --> 00:23:04,424
Africans were held for days,
even months, until ships,
377
00:23:04,508 --> 00:23:06,259
like the Clotilda,
378
00:23:06,343 --> 00:23:09,513
arrived to take them
across the Atlantic.
379
00:23:10,347 --> 00:23:13,183
[Alex Amoussouvi] There were
five major forts in Ouidah:
380
00:23:13,266 --> 00:23:16,186
the Danish, the Dutch,
the French, the English,
381
00:23:16,269 --> 00:23:18,647
and the Portuguese fort.
382
00:23:19,731 --> 00:23:23,777
They were kept chained here
until the ships were ready.
383
00:23:37,666 --> 00:23:41,294
[Altevese Rosario]
Oh, my goodness.
384
00:23:43,046 --> 00:23:44,214
[Tara Roberts]
Those are shackles?
385
00:23:44,297 --> 00:23:46,550
[Altevese Rosario]
Those are shackles.
386
00:23:46,633 --> 00:23:53,265
Oh, my God.
Oh, my--
387
00:23:53,348 --> 00:23:55,934
[gasps].
388
00:23:57,394 --> 00:23:58,395
[Tara Roberts]
389
00:23:58,478 --> 00:23:59,855
That's a neck shackle.
390
00:23:59,938 --> 00:24:01,940
[Altevese Rosario]
391
00:24:02,023 --> 00:24:05,068
Oh, my God.
392
00:24:06,236 --> 00:24:10,157
[Cassandra Lewis] Imagine this
around your neck and the weight.
393
00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:13,118
[Alex Amoussouvi] Captives
could be up to 60, 80, 100,
394
00:24:13,201 --> 00:24:17,873
200 that were kept here
with very little, no food.
395
00:24:18,665 --> 00:24:22,294
Only once in a day,
they were fed.
396
00:24:23,587 --> 00:24:25,881
[Garry Lumbers] How do you
think the women's felt?
397
00:24:25,964 --> 00:24:27,215
[Altevese Rosario] That was the
first thing that came to mind.
398
00:24:27,299 --> 00:24:29,176
If you're having
your menstrual cycle.
399
00:24:29,259 --> 00:24:30,635
[Delisha Marshall]
Or if you're pregnant.
400
00:24:30,719 --> 00:24:33,305
[Tara Roberts] Trafficking
that many people, you know,
401
00:24:33,388 --> 00:24:35,557
through a fort like this.
402
00:24:35,640 --> 00:24:37,434
[Altevese Rosario] Which
I'm sure was not cleaned,
403
00:24:37,517 --> 00:24:40,604
so whatever the group
of people did in here once
404
00:24:40,687 --> 00:24:42,439
they were taken away,
405
00:24:42,522 --> 00:24:46,109
another group came in
and sat in the blood,
406
00:24:46,193 --> 00:24:48,653
in the feces, in the urine.
407
00:24:48,737 --> 00:24:52,699
You're now sitting in
yours and someone else's.
408
00:24:52,782 --> 00:24:56,161
[Garry Lumbers]
This is a lot to ingest.
409
00:25:02,834 --> 00:25:06,838
[Alex Amoussouvi] On average,
they were spending roughly
410
00:25:06,922 --> 00:25:09,132
two months here.
411
00:25:09,966 --> 00:25:13,553
[Altevese Rosario] And
then you're at the market.
412
00:25:13,637 --> 00:25:16,264
[Tara Roberts] Right.
413
00:25:16,348 --> 00:25:18,141
[Altevese Rosario]
You're at the market like
414
00:25:18,225 --> 00:25:22,812
you're a cow waiting to be sold.
415
00:25:25,273 --> 00:25:28,151
[Alex Amoussouvi] The moats
are just around the fence that
416
00:25:28,235 --> 00:25:31,279
circles the old fort.
417
00:25:31,363 --> 00:25:34,824
They were infested
with crocodiles.
418
00:25:34,908 --> 00:25:37,536
It is believed that there
were some that were thrown
419
00:25:37,619 --> 00:25:40,705
into the gutters.
420
00:25:40,789 --> 00:25:43,375
[Altevese Rosario] Cassandra,
you want to lead us in prayer?
421
00:25:44,501 --> 00:25:49,297
[Cassandra Lewis] Lord,
Father God, this room here,
422
00:25:50,715 --> 00:25:53,635
it's just a spirit here,
423
00:25:53,718 --> 00:25:56,596
it's just making us
feel kind of down.
424
00:25:56,680 --> 00:26:02,686
I ask you to lift us up and
carry us in a decent way.
425
00:26:03,019 --> 00:26:04,396
[Descendants] Amen.
426
00:26:11,236 --> 00:26:15,490
[♪ African music plays]
427
00:26:15,574 --> 00:26:17,409
[Tara Roberts]
We're off to Abomey,
428
00:26:17,492 --> 00:26:20,912
once the capital of
the Dahomey kingdom.
429
00:26:20,996 --> 00:26:23,415
Between the 17th
and 19th centuries,
430
00:26:23,498 --> 00:26:25,375
twelve kings reigned,
431
00:26:25,458 --> 00:26:28,295
many of whom expanded
the kingdom by conquering
432
00:26:28,378 --> 00:26:33,508
neighboring tribes and
selling captives to be enslaved.
433
00:26:33,592 --> 00:26:37,012
During that era, Dahomey
became one of the most powerful
434
00:26:37,095 --> 00:26:39,806
kingdoms on the
West Coast of Africa.
435
00:26:41,474 --> 00:26:47,397
[singing in Fon]
436
00:26:50,025 --> 00:26:53,820
Today, the country of Benin
is no longer a monarchy,
437
00:26:53,903 --> 00:26:57,532
it's a republic, and the
title of king is primarily
438
00:26:57,616 --> 00:26:59,534
a ceremonial one.
439
00:27:00,076 --> 00:27:02,454
[Alex Amoussouvi]
Let us prostrate. Like this.
440
00:27:12,005 --> 00:27:14,132
[Alex Amoussouvi] The
King of the most powerful
441
00:27:14,215 --> 00:27:18,553
Dahomey Kingdom wants to
442
00:27:18,637 --> 00:27:22,182
renew his gratitude.
443
00:27:26,436 --> 00:27:33,401
[speaking in Bon]
444
00:27:35,945 --> 00:27:39,532
[Alex Amoussouvi]
Everybody accepts today that
445
00:27:39,616 --> 00:27:44,704
the slave trade was a
crime against humanity.
446
00:27:46,665 --> 00:27:49,834
[speaking in Bon]
447
00:27:49,918 --> 00:27:53,922
[Alex Amoussouvi]
And today, we are ready to
448
00:27:54,005 --> 00:27:57,425
move forward in a partnership,
449
00:27:58,343 --> 00:28:03,598
{\an8}in a strength building
between Africans and Africans
450
00:28:03,682 --> 00:28:05,725
{\an8}of the diaspora.
451
00:28:05,809 --> 00:28:10,063
[speaking in Bon]
452
00:28:10,146 --> 00:28:12,315
[Alex Amoussouvi]
And that is why His Majesty is
453
00:28:12,399 --> 00:28:15,068
expecting you to
come back again.
454
00:28:15,151 --> 00:28:18,530
All his children,
all his grandchildren,
455
00:28:19,698 --> 00:28:21,658
they should come back home.
456
00:28:21,991 --> 00:28:24,035
[Cassandra Lewis]
Wow, this is amazing.
457
00:28:24,119 --> 00:28:26,246
You can't even imagine.
458
00:28:26,329 --> 00:28:28,123
[Altevese Rosario]
It's a sense of peace,
459
00:28:28,206 --> 00:28:30,333
it's a sense of comfort.
460
00:28:30,417 --> 00:28:33,086
[Garry Lumbers] This is what
Afro-Americans need to know.
461
00:28:33,169 --> 00:28:36,923
[Altevese Rosario] Yeah, that
they can always come home.
462
00:28:48,268 --> 00:28:50,937
[Tara Roberts] After our
visit with the current king,
463
00:28:51,020 --> 00:28:53,773
we're now off to
meet a direct descendant of
464
00:28:53,857 --> 00:28:56,651
a past king.
465
00:28:56,735 --> 00:28:59,446
Like Delisha, this
descendant can trace
466
00:28:59,529 --> 00:29:02,323
his lineage to King Glele,
467
00:29:02,407 --> 00:29:05,452
who ordered the raid
on Cudjo's village and exiled
468
00:29:05,535 --> 00:29:08,079
Gumpa from the royal court.
469
00:29:11,249 --> 00:29:15,879
[speaking in Bon]
470
00:29:19,549 --> 00:29:22,594
[speaking in Bon]
471
00:29:23,219 --> 00:29:26,389
[Interpreter] The king
is very happy to welcome you.
472
00:29:26,890 --> 00:29:28,266
- Thank you.
473
00:29:28,349 --> 00:29:31,436
[speaking in Bon]
474
00:29:31,978 --> 00:29:34,189
[Interpreter]:
If you have any questions,
475
00:29:34,522 --> 00:29:36,900
it is your time to ask him.
476
00:29:37,650 --> 00:29:39,819
{\an8}[Delisha Marshall] Can you
tell us a little about Glele
477
00:29:39,903 --> 00:29:41,696
{\an8}and what he was like?
478
00:29:42,071 --> 00:29:45,658
[speaking in Bon]
479
00:29:46,159 --> 00:29:48,453
[Interpreter]: When the
King Glele come to power,
480
00:29:48,536 --> 00:29:51,331
he reign with peace
and with progress of the
481
00:29:51,414 --> 00:29:53,666
Kingdom of Dahomey.
482
00:29:53,750 --> 00:29:57,295
He liked people.
He liked Europeans.
483
00:29:57,378 --> 00:29:59,297
He liked everybody.
484
00:30:00,048 --> 00:30:02,175
{\an8}[Altevese Rosario]
Because the King has such a
485
00:30:02,258 --> 00:30:04,469
{\an8}good relationship with
the Europeans,
486
00:30:04,552 --> 00:30:08,348
{\an8}did he know what
European slavery was like?
487
00:30:09,849 --> 00:30:15,021
[Interpreter] The King of Abomey
never sold people as a slave.
488
00:30:17,524 --> 00:30:23,696
Those men and women
travel to America to
489
00:30:23,780 --> 00:30:25,949
work with those Europeans,
490
00:30:26,491 --> 00:30:29,118
and they want to
have a good relationship
491
00:30:29,202 --> 00:30:31,162
with those Europeans,
492
00:30:31,246 --> 00:30:34,332
so if today we
talk about slavery,
493
00:30:34,415 --> 00:30:40,505
it's to show the negative
parts of the kingdom of Abomey,
494
00:30:40,588 --> 00:30:42,298
but that is not right.
495
00:30:42,382 --> 00:30:45,927
It is wrong.
So this is the facts.
496
00:30:46,010 --> 00:30:49,889
[Altevese Rosario] Is the
King saying the fact is that
497
00:30:49,973 --> 00:30:53,226
my ancestor was
not sold into slavery?
498
00:30:54,310 --> 00:30:56,145
[speaking in Bon]
499
00:30:56,563 --> 00:31:00,108
[Interpreter]: The King said
that they never sold people.
500
00:31:00,191 --> 00:31:04,362
[Altevese Rosario]
Because my ancestor, Kossola,
501
00:31:04,445 --> 00:31:08,449
told his children and his
children's children that he
502
00:31:08,533 --> 00:31:11,870
did not go willingly.
503
00:31:11,953 --> 00:31:16,332
To say that Africans
were not sold into slavery
504
00:31:16,416 --> 00:31:18,126
is not only false,
505
00:31:18,209 --> 00:31:20,837
but it makes it seem as
though he thinks I'm foolish.
506
00:31:21,796 --> 00:31:26,467
[speaking in Bon]
507
00:31:26,551 --> 00:31:29,888
[Laughter].
508
00:31:29,971 --> 00:31:33,892
[Altevese Rosario] I feel very
much so mocked by the laughter,
509
00:31:33,975 --> 00:31:38,730
and that got me more
enraged to the point to where
510
00:31:38,813 --> 00:31:41,232
I wanted to get
up and walk away.
511
00:31:42,942 --> 00:31:44,319
[Cassandra Lewis] I was stunned.
512
00:31:44,402 --> 00:31:47,363
Do you know we lost relatives?
513
00:31:47,447 --> 00:31:51,743
{\an8}And for you to
sit here and deny it,
514
00:31:51,826 --> 00:31:53,703
it was shocking to me.
515
00:31:55,163 --> 00:31:56,414
[Garry Lumbers] I didn't
want the conversation to go
516
00:31:56,497 --> 00:31:58,833
where it was going.
517
00:31:58,917 --> 00:32:01,044
I just didn't want
nobody to be hurt.
518
00:32:02,545 --> 00:32:06,257
{\an8}He's not going to say that
his family was part of an
519
00:32:06,341 --> 00:32:08,092
{\an8}illegal slave trade.
520
00:32:08,176 --> 00:32:10,803
{\an8}I don't expect for him
to say that he's wrong.
521
00:32:11,679 --> 00:32:16,017
[speaking in Bon]
522
00:32:16,100 --> 00:32:21,481
[Tara Roberts] The king
started off saying these things
523
00:32:21,564 --> 00:32:23,441
that impacted us all.
524
00:32:25,151 --> 00:32:27,111
But then he changed his tune,
525
00:32:27,195 --> 00:32:29,364
but he didn't change
his tune on his own.
526
00:32:29,447 --> 00:32:34,869
{\an8}Someone on our team went
to the prince and told him
527
00:32:34,953 --> 00:32:39,791
no, no, no, no, no, no,
this is what happened,
528
00:32:39,874 --> 00:32:42,502
and you will not disrespect us.
529
00:32:45,046 --> 00:32:47,507
[Alex Amoussouvi]
The king says for
530
00:32:47,590 --> 00:32:51,511
reconciliation to take place,
531
00:32:51,594 --> 00:32:54,973
it is important
to continue to talk,
532
00:32:55,056 --> 00:32:57,392
to continue to exchange,
533
00:32:57,475 --> 00:33:01,312
for us to be finally,
how you say?
534
00:33:01,854 --> 00:33:03,272
[Alex Amoussouvi]
Cleansed. Cleansed, exactly.
535
00:33:04,983 --> 00:33:07,485
[Altevese Rosario] I
have a final question.
536
00:33:07,568 --> 00:33:09,988
Why not sell them,
537
00:33:10,071 --> 00:33:12,615
send them to a
place where they can
538
00:33:12,699 --> 00:33:14,200
keep their culture intact,
539
00:33:14,283 --> 00:33:16,995
where they can be
with their people,
540
00:33:17,078 --> 00:33:20,123
where they can
eventually return home?
541
00:33:20,206 --> 00:33:21,791
Because in America,
542
00:33:21,874 --> 00:33:25,294
they are completely cut off
from their language,
543
00:33:25,378 --> 00:33:26,921
from their people,
from their culture,
544
00:33:27,005 --> 00:33:28,006
[Delisha Marshall]
From their families.
545
00:33:28,089 --> 00:33:30,341
[Altevese Rosario] So
why send them to a place
546
00:33:30,425 --> 00:33:33,845
where you know they
will never have contact with
547
00:33:33,928 --> 00:33:36,639
what is most
deeply pure of them?
548
00:33:37,807 --> 00:33:40,018
[Delisha Marshall] It's okay.
549
00:33:40,101 --> 00:33:42,937
[Altevese Rosario]
It's not okay. It's not.
550
00:33:43,438 --> 00:33:46,816
[Delisha Marshall] It's okay.
This is what we came for.
551
00:33:46,899 --> 00:33:48,693
We came for answers.
552
00:33:48,776 --> 00:33:52,030
[Altevese Rosario] I did notice
other ladies that were crying.
553
00:33:52,113 --> 00:33:55,324
And that was a
sense of comfort for me.
554
00:33:56,325 --> 00:33:57,952
Regardless of what
else has happened,
555
00:33:58,036 --> 00:34:00,705
regardless of what anyone
else is saying, you get it,
556
00:34:00,788 --> 00:34:03,833
and you're with me in spirit,
and you feel my pain.
557
00:34:05,877 --> 00:34:07,587
[Delisha Marshall] Both sides
need to take ownership.
558
00:34:07,670 --> 00:34:12,675
So I'm equally mad at
Glele and people like him who
559
00:34:12,759 --> 00:34:14,218
enslave their own.
560
00:34:14,302 --> 00:34:18,639
That doesn't diminish any of
the part that slave traders and
561
00:34:18,723 --> 00:34:20,683
slave owners played in this.
562
00:34:20,767 --> 00:34:24,353
Everyone needs to be held
accountable for what happened.
563
00:34:24,437 --> 00:34:27,899
And that is why a lot of
people are still angry.
564
00:34:32,070 --> 00:34:36,991
[♪ African music plays]
565
00:34:44,499 --> 00:34:48,044
[Delisha Marshall] Some of
the elders from Glele's family
566
00:34:48,127 --> 00:34:52,632
took me into Glele's
personal palace.
567
00:34:53,549 --> 00:34:59,472
This would be where Gumpa would
hang out like in everyday life.
568
00:34:59,847 --> 00:35:01,849
Prior to leaving Alabama,
569
00:35:01,933 --> 00:35:05,061
I dug up some soil which
is around the chimney that
570
00:35:05,144 --> 00:35:09,107
still remains of the
house that he lived in...
571
00:35:09,190 --> 00:35:10,858
Welcome home, Gumpa.
572
00:35:10,942 --> 00:35:15,113
...to give his soul a release
and to fulfill his wish.
573
00:35:23,162 --> 00:35:25,414
...thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
574
00:35:25,498 --> 00:35:27,208
on earth as it is in heaven.
575
00:35:27,291 --> 00:35:29,001
Give us this day,
our daily bread,
576
00:35:29,085 --> 00:35:30,545
and forgive us our trespasses,
577
00:35:30,628 --> 00:35:32,922
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
578
00:35:33,005 --> 00:35:36,717
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
579
00:35:36,801 --> 00:35:39,512
For thine is kingdom, the
power and glory forever.
580
00:35:39,595 --> 00:35:41,556
Amen.
581
00:35:44,851 --> 00:35:47,353
I know it's something
that he's been wanting,
582
00:35:47,436 --> 00:35:50,982
{\an8}and my family's been
wanting to do for 162 years.
583
00:35:51,482 --> 00:35:53,609
So finally being able
to do that for him,
584
00:35:53,693 --> 00:35:59,115
it feels very freeing, and I
hope he's at peace as well.
585
00:36:03,619 --> 00:36:08,749
[♪ uplifting music plays]
586
00:36:09,125 --> 00:36:10,835
{\an8}[Tara Roberts] We're
on our way to Bantè.
587
00:36:10,918 --> 00:36:13,921
{\an8}[Altevese Rosario]
Yes. I am so excited.
588
00:36:14,005 --> 00:36:15,840
{\an8}Like I can barely
contain myself.
589
00:36:15,923 --> 00:36:17,008
{\an8}[Tara Roberts]
What about you, Garry?
590
00:36:17,091 --> 00:36:19,218
{\an8}Do you feel nervous
about anything at all?
591
00:36:19,302 --> 00:36:21,596
{\an8}[Garry Lumbers] I'm
just going to take it in.
592
00:36:21,679 --> 00:36:23,890
{\an8}[Delisha Marshall]
That has to be exciting.
593
00:36:23,973 --> 00:36:25,975
I'm excited for you, guys.
594
00:36:29,896 --> 00:36:36,235
[♪ distant African music]
595
00:36:47,205 --> 00:36:50,791
[cheering and chanting in Bon]
596
00:36:52,293 --> 00:36:56,297
Oh, wow.
Do y'all see this?
597
00:36:56,797 --> 00:36:59,091
Oh, my God.
598
00:37:03,679 --> 00:37:07,058
[Altevese Rosario]
Scores of people.
599
00:37:07,141 --> 00:37:10,770
Old people, young people.
Men. Women.
600
00:37:15,942 --> 00:37:21,322
[cheering and chanting in Bon]
601
00:37:26,869 --> 00:37:30,748
[cheering and chanting in Bon]
602
00:37:30,831 --> 00:37:32,541
[Cassandra Lewis] You
got my brother's nose.
603
00:37:32,625 --> 00:37:36,212
You got my sister's eyes.
You got my cousin's cheeks.
604
00:37:36,295 --> 00:37:39,465
Everybody represents somebody.
605
00:37:44,136 --> 00:37:47,223
[Altevese Rosario] I didn't
feel like a stranger anymore.
606
00:37:51,894 --> 00:37:57,441
[♪ African music plays]
607
00:38:06,075 --> 00:38:09,954
The oldest of the elders just
told us welcome back home,
608
00:38:10,788 --> 00:38:12,707
you're home, you're our family,
609
00:38:12,790 --> 00:38:14,500
your family is here.
610
00:38:14,583 --> 00:38:18,254
And every person just
echoed that sentiment,
611
00:38:18,337 --> 00:38:19,714
and it really did feel that way.
612
00:38:20,339 --> 00:38:23,634
[Justin] He's very
glad because your ancestor
613
00:38:23,718 --> 00:38:26,470
write his story
614
00:38:26,554 --> 00:38:28,180
and because of his story
615
00:38:28,264 --> 00:38:29,765
you know the route
616
00:38:29,849 --> 00:38:31,517
and you've come back home.
617
00:38:38,607 --> 00:38:41,736
{\an8}[Altevese Rosario]
I am so overwhelmed.
618
00:38:42,236 --> 00:38:43,988
{\an8}[Tara Roberts] I have snot
coming out my nose now.
619
00:38:44,071 --> 00:38:45,740
[Altevese Rosario] Like,
I'm thinking, okay this is the
620
00:38:45,823 --> 00:38:47,033
path that he walked.
621
00:38:47,116 --> 00:38:49,952
Like even just in his normal
everyday, just going places,
622
00:38:50,036 --> 00:38:51,912
this is the ground
that his feet touched,
623
00:38:51,996 --> 00:38:54,123
and then coming back
into the village,
624
00:38:54,206 --> 00:38:55,249
these are the
songs that he sang.
625
00:38:55,333 --> 00:38:56,625
These are the
dances that he did.
626
00:38:56,709 --> 00:38:58,085
These are the drums
that he saw, and he heard.
627
00:38:58,169 --> 00:38:59,378
[Tara Roberts] Yes,
yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
628
00:38:59,462 --> 00:39:00,629
These are the faces that he saw.
629
00:39:00,713 --> 00:39:01,714
[Altevese Rosario]
These are the faces,
630
00:39:01,797 --> 00:39:03,549
these are his people,
and these are my people,
631
00:39:03,632 --> 00:39:05,760
and they're saying
you're home, you're home.
632
00:39:05,843 --> 00:39:07,887
[Tara Roberts] Yes, yes, yes!
633
00:39:13,684 --> 00:39:16,228
This isn't even
my story, but it is my story.
634
00:39:16,312 --> 00:39:17,938
[Altevese Rosario]
It is your story,
635
00:39:18,022 --> 00:39:19,857
it's all of our stories, it is.
636
00:39:19,940 --> 00:39:21,942
It is your story.
637
00:39:28,949 --> 00:39:32,244
[Tara Roberts] The moment had
finally come to ceremoniously
638
00:39:32,328 --> 00:39:36,457
bring Cudjo Lewis home.
639
00:39:41,045 --> 00:39:43,631
[Altevese Rosario] So it was a
ceremony that we had to perform,
640
00:39:43,714 --> 00:39:48,594
a ritual that could only be
performed by blood relatives.
641
00:39:49,845 --> 00:39:53,808
And it had to do with us
giving him an offering,
642
00:39:54,266 --> 00:39:58,521
and it was really just
us inviting him back,
643
00:39:58,604 --> 00:40:00,606
his spirit back
into the village,
644
00:40:00,940 --> 00:40:04,819
and then sealing it in a way
where his spirit is tethered
645
00:40:04,902 --> 00:40:06,987
to his village.
646
00:40:08,489 --> 00:40:10,783
[Delisha Marshall]
I'm so excited.
647
00:40:11,909 --> 00:40:15,496
[Cassandra Lewis] I had to
get down and draw the map.
648
00:40:15,579 --> 00:40:17,164
[Garry Lumbers]
Pour it out, Cassandra.
649
00:40:17,248 --> 00:40:19,583
We're going to put
Pop-pop in the middle.
650
00:40:19,667 --> 00:40:21,794
Put the heart in there, yeah.
651
00:40:21,877 --> 00:40:25,548
[Cassandra Lewis] We
spread Cudjo's and his wife's
652
00:40:25,631 --> 00:40:28,884
soil in the middle
with the heart.
653
00:40:28,968 --> 00:40:30,469
[Altevese Rosario]
We placed soil from our
654
00:40:30,553 --> 00:40:34,140
other ancestors from Mobile,
bringing them home as well.
655
00:40:35,224 --> 00:40:37,268
[Garry Lumbers]
Tell them to call Cudjo.
656
00:40:37,351 --> 00:40:39,103
Tell him to come home.
657
00:40:40,312 --> 00:40:44,733
[group chanting in Bon]
658
00:40:48,821 --> 00:40:54,910
[Garry Lumbers] Louder.
Louder! Louder! Louder!
659
00:41:00,499 --> 00:41:03,752
[group chanting in Bon]
660
00:41:03,836 --> 00:41:05,212
Bring him home, come on.
661
00:41:05,296 --> 00:41:09,717
Bring him home!
662
00:41:09,800 --> 00:41:12,761
That wasn't just me.
That was the family.
663
00:41:12,845 --> 00:41:14,763
That was the
people of the village.
664
00:41:14,847 --> 00:41:16,098
That was everybody!
665
00:41:16,182 --> 00:41:21,854
Come on, come on,
come on, come on, come on!
666
00:41:21,937 --> 00:41:25,649
[chanting continues and fades]
667
00:41:27,735 --> 00:41:29,069
[Cassandra Lewis] When it ended.
668
00:41:29,153 --> 00:41:30,446
I said is it done?
669
00:41:30,529 --> 00:41:32,281
And he said yes.
670
00:41:32,364 --> 00:41:35,659
So I had to turn to
everybody and say it's done.
671
00:41:36,785 --> 00:41:40,539
[Tara Roberts] It wasn't
my family returning home.
672
00:41:41,373 --> 00:41:44,793
But it was.
673
00:41:45,127 --> 00:41:47,129
The stories of our ancestors,
674
00:41:47,213 --> 00:41:49,465
specifically
African American people,
675
00:41:49,548 --> 00:41:50,925
are human stories.
676
00:41:51,008 --> 00:41:55,888
And they're not just about
the condition of enslavement.
677
00:41:55,971 --> 00:41:58,516
There is joy.
There is power.
678
00:41:58,599 --> 00:42:03,354
There is agency.
This work is about discovery.
679
00:42:04,063 --> 00:42:06,774
[Garry Lumbers] We're ready.
We're good, we're good.
680
00:42:08,234 --> 00:42:10,903
[Tara Roberts] It's about
remembering and honoring and
681
00:42:10,986 --> 00:42:13,030
reckoning and restoring,
682
00:42:13,113 --> 00:42:15,449
and ultimately,
it's about healing.
683
00:42:21,080 --> 00:42:23,290
[Altevese Rosario] Where
we performed our ceremony,
684
00:42:23,374 --> 00:42:27,920
that is a part of the three
acres of land that the village
685
00:42:28,003 --> 00:42:29,964
has gifted us.
686
00:42:30,047 --> 00:42:31,966
The expectation is
that we come back.
687
00:42:32,049 --> 00:42:34,927
Which we will.
688
00:42:36,929 --> 00:42:43,811
[♪ African music plays]
689
00:42:43,894 --> 00:42:45,938
[Tara Roberts] Our
journey wasn't over yet.
690
00:42:46,021 --> 00:42:48,566
The town of Bantè
had a surprise for
691
00:42:48,649 --> 00:42:50,818
Cudjo's descendants.
692
00:42:55,614 --> 00:42:57,074
[Altevese Rosario] Oh
my goodness gracious,
693
00:42:57,157 --> 00:42:59,535
you have got to be kidding me.
694
00:42:59,618 --> 00:43:01,036
[Cassandra Lewis]
When we saw it,
695
00:43:01,120 --> 00:43:03,247
I spotted it from afar,
696
00:43:03,330 --> 00:43:05,749
and I couldn't take
my eyes off of it.
697
00:43:05,833 --> 00:43:09,420
The statue was so beautiful.
698
00:43:09,503 --> 00:43:11,088
[Altevese Rosario]
Wow, look at this!
699
00:43:11,171 --> 00:43:14,425
[Tara Roberts] Do you
want to read it out loud?
700
00:43:15,801 --> 00:43:19,096
[Altevese Rosario]
"Cudjo Oluale Kossola Lewis
701
00:43:19,179 --> 00:43:21,640
from Benin to Alabama, USA,
702
00:43:21,724 --> 00:43:23,976
last survivor of the
last known slave ship to
703
00:43:24,059 --> 00:43:25,978
enter the United States.
704
00:43:26,061 --> 00:43:29,940
{\an8}He was one of over 100
African men and women purchased
705
00:43:30,024 --> 00:43:32,651
{\an8}and brought across the
Atlantic to Mobile, Alabama,
706
00:43:32,735 --> 00:43:36,405
aboard the slave ship Clotilda."
707
00:43:36,488 --> 00:43:39,408
[Garry Lumbers]
They never forgot him.
708
00:43:39,491 --> 00:43:42,661
He must've sent out some
strong vibes back here, man,
709
00:43:43,912 --> 00:43:45,706
for them to
remember him like this.
710
00:43:45,789 --> 00:43:48,125
[Altevese Rosario] Yeah.
711
00:43:48,208 --> 00:43:51,879
{\an8}[Tara Roberts] My hope that
as people listen to this story,
712
00:43:51,962 --> 00:43:54,715
{\an8}as they connect
to this miraculous,
713
00:43:54,798 --> 00:43:58,302
{\an8}amazing opportunity
for the descendants to
714
00:43:58,385 --> 00:44:00,095
{\an8}connect with their roots,
715
00:44:00,179 --> 00:44:03,223
{\an8}that something gets
healed in our world.
716
00:44:04,141 --> 00:44:07,019
{\an8}And that feels like,
that's everything.