Who Do You Think You Are? (2010) s01e02 Episode Script

They will travel the world in search of their heritage.
Oh! Family mysteries will be revealed.
I had always thought she was dead.
Is this the only known picture of him? That's the only known picture.
How absolutely terrifying.
And everything they thought they knew Will be rewritten.
- Oh, my god! - what? This is a story that's gettin' good.
Yes! - Gettysburg? - Gettysburg.
- That's history right there.
- That sure is.
Lives will be changed My name is lisa kudrow, and And I think we're related.
Roots will be discovered.
Amazing.
This is incredible.
This is it.
This is where it all began.
It all started here.
Because to know who you are, You have to know where you came from.
It's like learning That there's something different in your bein Than what you always thought.
I have found what I was looking for.
So do you know who you are? Oh, I've always known who I am, but now I know more.
It's changed everything About who I thought I was.
Everything.
Tonight, football legend emmitt smith Embarks on an incredible journey Into his family's slave history.
I know very little about my family's background.
It's a heartwrenching experience Which helps him uncover the mystery Of his family's roots.
He was cold and heartless.
And redefine himself As an african-american.
I ve found what I was looking for.
Finding the information is Incredible.
Oh, my gosh.
But I'm still looking for that pathway to take me back To the motherland of africa.
Go.
Dallas cowboy emmitt smith Is one of the greatest running backs of all time And holds the nfl record in career rushing yards.
Ej.
He retired from the game in 2005 And now lives in dallas with his wife and four children.
I grew up in the housing projects, and then I moved over.
The world of football took me out of one place, And I was able to go see mething else and see, Wow, I can dream bigger now.
This is possible.
Right here in america.
So I look at this as a journey back, A journey to reconnect, A way for me and my family Truly to understand a lot more of our history.
You need to understand where you were To appreciate where you are.
The chance to really look into his origins Has really sparked something in him.
'cause he missed so many family gatherings Over the years, all the family reunions And all the parties and cookouts.
You know, he was playing ball.
He'll be 40 this year.
So it's a big year for him.
It's monumental.
As an african-american, Most of us had this sense of pride That we had come from the motherland of africa.
And when you go back to the beginning of the bible Or you go back to adam and eve, The beginning is out of africa.
And if so, who am I connected to? How do you connect with it? How does that impact who you are? Those are the answers that I'm looking for.
I've been told that tracing african ancestry Through written records can be difficult.
So I'm taking a dna test To see what my genes will reveal about my ancestors.
Are you anticipating what you're gonna find out? Well I'm gonna find out Probably some key information on my drive, My determination, my passion for certain things.
We all are connected one way or another, And it's by the blood In some way, shape, or form.
Now, how that connection ties back to me That's what I'm looking to find out.
So now I have a chance to go back And truly understand How I became emmitt james smith iii.
- Bye.
- Bye, babies.
- Bye.
- We're gonna miss you.
Have a safe flight.
I hope you find what you're looking for.
We love you.
- Bye, daddy! There's only one place for me to start my journey, And that's in pensacola, florida.
It's the town where I grew up, And it's the home of my parents.
I know very little about my grandparents' background, And I'm hoping that my mom and my father Will be able to shed some lht on The clouded areas that I have.
Grandma erma lee And me.
Why didn't we, as a family, Talk a lot about Granddaddy's background? They had a hard time comin' up.
There were times they didn't have anything to eat.
- Right.
- They didn't want to talk About what happened back in the older days.
With that said, how 'bout my grandmama, erma lee? Give me a little bit of her background.
Well, mama was the oldest Of her brothers and sisters.
Always, if you came up wrong You--you felt the wrath.
You felt the wrath.
But, I mean, if you needed anything, She always had it.
Never wanted for anything.
If I was to start on grandmama's side Mm-hmm.
Where should I start? There is a website that your cousin vernon watson developed.
On my grandmother's side, erma lee, Stemmed from burnt corn, alabama.
Heard of it, but I don't think I've ever been there.
Hmm.
This is the beginning.
These are old photos.
There's mr.
William and mrs.
Victoria watson.
According to the watson family website, My father's mother, erma lee watson, Is the granddaughter of bill and victoria watson, Making them my great-great-grandparents.
I might have to go to burnt corn.
Hey, let's go to burnt corn.
I feel like a Like a detective on the hunt, Trying to find clues.
Wow.
It look like a deserted town.
I may have dreamt this.
You can see over there The u.
S.
Post office at burnt corn, alabama.
I tell you what, after looking at this, If I'm gonna find out any more about the watsons, I'm gonna need some help.
'cause I'm not gonna get it from these buildings.
These buildings don't talk back to me.
I'm gonna knock on some doors To find out where are the watsons.
Hello? - Hey, how you doing? - Good.
How you doing? - Fine.
I'm looking for some information on some people.
I'm looking for some watsons.
- Looking for some watsons.
- Yeah.
And I have this photo here-- Bill and victoria watson.
Mm-hmm.
- We? - Mm-hmm.
- And - And you.
- And me.
- Mm-hmm.
All right, I'm emmitt.
Who are you? - I'm joe.
- Joe? Joe? Joe watson? Joe watson, junior.
Wow.
It's a pleasure to meet you.
Yeah, I thought I recognized you.
you thought you recog-- Now, now-- And your daddy - Is joe watson.
Is joe watson.
And your grandfather.
Who's your grandfather? Grandfather was bob.
Bob? Okay.
And you are joe junior.
As it turns out, Bill and victoria are joe's great-grandparents, Making him my second cousin.
I'm looking for some more detailed information That would help me understand them more And even go farther.
You need to go to the monroe county courthouse.
The monroe county courthouse.
Mm-hmm.
I'm hoping that the courthouse holds the records That I need to go deeper into my family's past.
Coming up Emmitt smith confronts the disturbing history Of the old south.
This is one of the first times I've seen a book that says " marriage license colored.
" And later, Emmitt finds a missing link to his past.
This is a story that's getting good! Emmitt smith is tracing his family roots, Trying to find a path back to africa.
So far, his search has taken him To his grandmother's birthplace of burnt corn, alabama Where he has just met another descendent of the watsons.
Now he's heading to the monroeville county archives To meet with dawn crook.
Hello.
You must be dawn.
- I am.
- I'm emmitt.
- Nice to meet you.
- Pleasure meeting you.
- Yeah.
- Um, I was told That you could help me find some information out On the watson family.
- All right.
- From burnt corn.
- White or black? - Black.
Okay, since this is black genealogy, That's gonna be a little bit more difficult.
Why is that a little bit more difficult? Because the records are sporadic.
When you do the difference between the genealogy, Between the black and the white, Before the '60s, they were segregated.
So you would go to the marriage licenses.
They say marriage licenses.
See? And then colored.
- Colored.
And the other ones would say white.
- Hold on a second.
- Mm-hmm.
NowI've never seen A water fountain that said colored or white.
Right.
This is probably one of the first times I've seen a book that says " marriage license colored.
" - Mm-hmm.
- Wow.
When I saw that book that had colored on it, I really felt the power of segregation.
I can understand how our people felt isolated And separate from america, And that is painful, very painful.
I'm trying to figure out how my family Fit in with bill watson and victoria watson.
All right, we'll go to the census records.
That's the easiest way.
You go to ancestry.
Com, And this is something you can do at home, okay? All right.
- Um Now we're gonna go to the 1900 census.
- Okay.
- All right.
Try there.
Okay.
There's bill watson.
All right.
Okay.
So he's the head of the house.
There's victoria, the wife.
Okay.
William watson was born in 1862.
Right.
Victoria was born in 1864.
- Right.
- All right? Uh, being born before 1865, does it say anything to you? - They were slaves.
- Mm-hmm.
Now that I have the information that I have And understand that bill watson was born into slavery, My question now is How did bill watson's family tree begin And where? So I'm meeting with marjorie sholes.
She's a top expert in african-american genealogy, And I'm hoping that she can help me go further back.
Well, let me tell you something.
I was able to do a little research.
I have the marriage license Of bill watson Victoria - Puryear.
Puryear is her maiden name.
- Wow.
- Now that's a gem.
Because that's an unusual name.
And with african-american history, Many of the surnames are common, But you want to look for that little nugget For your nickname.
So what you're telling me is We're about to make a shift, And that shift is coming from The watson side of the family To the puryear side of the family To go deeper into - Exactly.
- My family's history.
- Exactly.
This name puryear, that one may be a slave owner.
Really.
African-americans at the end of the civil war Sometimes picked the names of their last slave owner.
So we wanna now look at Who were the parents of victoria-- - The parents of victoria? - Yes.
Whoa.
Take a look at this.
Her death certificate.
Her father's name- prince puryear.
I just found out that victoria is the daughter Of prince puryear.
But now I wanna know who is prince's father.
And where does the name puryear come from? Were the puryears my family's last slave owners? If we don't get any information out of these puryears, We may be at a dead end And that's not what I'm looking for is a dead end.
Coming up, emmitt smith comes face-to-face With his family's slave history.
They treated people like Like land And cattle.
Wow.
And later, emmitt uncovers Disturbing facts about the man who owned his ancestors.
Just sent chills up my spine Just thinking about how heartless he really was.
Emmitt smith has always been interested In his family slave history and african ancestry.
He's already discovered his great-great-grandparents, Bill and victoria watson, were born into slavery And that victoria's father was called prince puryear.
Now he wants to know more About his ancestors the puryears.
Okay.
We want to next get to the 1870 census, The first census Where african-americans were listed by name.
There's a-- is that puryear right there? - There's prince.
- Right.
In 1870, prince was a 23-year-old.
Right.
There's a "m" next to his name.
That could be male? - Right.
Okay, what is the second "m" for? The second "m" is a racial designation, "m" being mulatto.
- Wow.
- Mixed race.
Specifically Black, white race.
Correct.
Here's another puryear.
What is this in the latter? - 55.
- 55.
- She was a housekeeper.
- Mariah's a mulatto.
What are we saying here? Mariah is the mother Of prince? - Can possibly be.
And looking at this whole page, They were the few families that were all listed - As mulattos.
- As mulatto.
So if there's white blood in the family, Where did it come from? The slave owner himself.
Uh, his overseer.
Are we gonna look for The white slave owners of the puryears? If we can find there's a connection To a puryear who was a slave owner, Then that's the way we wanna go.
This is a story that's gettin' good! I'm lovin' this.
Now I know that prince was mixed race And born into slavery.
If mariah was his mother, Could she be the link Between the black and the white side of my family? Maybe I have some white blood in me.
Now, how much, it may be small, but it's there, And you cannot deny the fact.
Because I think the information's Starting to reveal some of these things.
When they had slaves around here, There could have been some comingling going on.
It's wild, it's challenging, it's heartbreaking.
But just finding the information is incredible.
What we found here in the 1850 census, There were only white puryears.
Right.
The records show that there was a white slave-owning family Living in the area called puryear-- Mary and alex b.
Puryear.
SoAre they who I'm looking for, The owners of my family? Marjorie has called me to an old plantation house.
She's found some new information About alexander puryear.
Here in the archives, There was this letter written by alexander puryear.
"I have just received a handsome lot of negroes, "and among them, some 15 to 20 men, If you feel disposed to enter into a traffick.
" He's selling them.
He was a slave-- - He was a slave trader.
- Yes, he was.
He was a slave trader.
We're gonna look at his will.
"alexander b.
Puryear "of the county of mecklenburg and the state of virginia.
He's getting them from the state of virginia.
He lives here.
He lives here in alabama.
But he came from virginia.
- Right.
This is the family cemetery.
Wow.
"mary f.
Puryear.
" The wife of alex b.
Puryear.
This is her right here, huh? - Take a look at this.
- Okay.
"one third of the slaves which I have and hold, "which I derive from the estate of my late husband, "alex b.
Puryear.
"mariah and children.
Henry, mary, mc tom, Victoria, and prince albert.
" Wow.
Prince albert.
- Yeah.
This is your family.
Now we know that prince's mother is mariah.
Right.
And I've gone back another generation.
- Exactly.
- Wow.
Miss mary f.
Puryear is passing The entire family over to another family member.
They were kept together.
That is very important.
You know, that's significant in that time.
That is significant.
Why was this family kept together? Why weren't they sold off and separated out? It's another chapter.
- Yeah.
That is another chapter that we have to explore and see.
- Right.
- So let me ask you this.
What is the significance of the 2250? That is a value in that inventory.
Here your family were listed with household furnishings.
"silver tea spoons and silver table spoons.
Mahogany chair.
" Mm.
They put a price on people like that.
And they treated people like land and cattle.
Mm-hmm.
And I can understand now why Black americans fought so hard for freedom And justice.
BecauseTo live like that in today's world Would not be- I couldn't imagine it.
People who came before me were pioneers In terms of shaping the future for me.
Because I am standing on the shoders of giants.
The little bit that I've gone through Is nothing compared to what my family went through.
Is prince or any of the other family members buried here? Where are they? Now, this is the white cemetery.
Look beyond the woods here, And the blacks would be buried there.
Maybe prince is over there.
It seems like my great-great-great-granddaddy Is buried somewhere in these woods.
Through time, his gravesite has rotted over.
And I do see mrs.
Puryear's gravesite, And so her family can still come visit her.
it is sad That I cannot go visit my great-great-great-grandfather.
But I'm happy that, when he was four years old And she passed, that she willed them over As a family together.
She did not break them up.
So therefore, prince grew up with his mother And his brothers and sisters, which is a wonderful thing.
Coming up, Emmitt smith travels to virginia And discovers how his ancestors were bought and sold.
They would have been auctioned by the audience out here.
Wow.
America the beautiful.
Emmitt smith is on a search Into his family history, Trying to find a path deeper into his roots.
He's just found out his ancestor mariah Was mixed race.
He wants to know if maah was a descendant Of the white slave owner alexander puryear.
So he's headed to virginia where the puryears are from.
I'm in mecklenburg, virginia Trying to find more information About alexander b.
Puryear Who was the slave owner of mariah And what mr.
Puryear did In terms of trafficking my ancestors From virginia to burnt corn, alabama.
"puryear tires.
" Wow.
"puryear's florist.
" These puryears are everywhere.
So I must be on the right track.
I'm heading to meet a local historian That knows a lot about this area.
I am lookin' for information On alexander b.
Puryear.
Alexander b.
Puryear was one of the puryear family That really built mecklenburg county.
They were one of the first settlers in this county in 1765.
They owned a tavern.
This tavern.
This tavern was the social hub Of mecklenburg county.
Slave trading was also one of the business activities At the tavern.
So if you look this way, That would have been the audience.
The slaves would have been introduced here And they would have been auctioned By the audience out here.
Wow.
Men and women.
And children.
- And children.
- And children.
America the beautiful.
Something else.
The more I hear about slavery, The more painful this journey becomes.
But I still need to find out more about mariah.
I know she was mixed race, and probably the link between The black and the white side of my family.
She may be the key to uncovering my family's roots.
How can you help me find The slave woman mariah? You know, we need to go to alexander's father, Samuel.
I think samuel may be the clue that we need To be able to find mariah.
There's some stuff in here on samuel puryear.
Let's try this one.
Book 22.
Hold on a second.
I don't know if you know much about my history, But I played football for 15 years In the national football league.
I been wearing jersey number 22 since llege.
- Wow.
- And for The information that we're looking for To be locked in book 22 Is kindaKinda odd.
- Maybe it's your destiny.
- Maybe it is my destiny.
I've always believed I was a child of destiny, But--whew.
This is Whoo.
It's making me a little nervous.
It's making me a little bit nervous.
Now, this was the 22nd book of deeds Registered in mecklenburg county.
This is a deed transferring property.
"samuel puryear, uh "the county of mecklenburg and the state of virginia" Confirming to "alexander The following property and negro girl named mariah.
" Wow.
"and horse" - "saddle.
" - "saddle, bridal for" - "forever.
" Mariah.
He asked that mr.
Samuel puryear gives to alexander A young slave girl by the name of mariah.
Back in the 1870 census, she was 55, I believe.
And so we think she was born in 1815.
So here-- this is dated 1826.
Correct.
She's 11 years old.
Wow.
So they're taking care of this girl From family member to family member.
Correct.
- Here, she's with samuel.
- Samuel probably had her bred.
And then when she got old enough, He gave her to his son.
You said samuel probably had her bred.
- Probably.
- Meaning He was the father of her? Don't know that.
They raised and bred horses And raised and bred slaves.
In terms of putting the times in perspective, I've got a booklet here That can actually trace the horses of mecklenburg county All the way back to England.
In other words, the horses were more important Than any slaves that they ever had.
Exactly.
Slaves were bred just like livestock.
I understand that.
They treated my people like animals.
But worse than animals.
- Animals were treated better.
- Better.
Animals were recorded.
Mariah was passed down with a horse bridal And a saddle.
She was such a young woman.
11 years old.
I have a 13-year-old daughter right now And I have a 10-year-old daughter right now, And I couldn't imagine them being passed down Through slavery that way.
If people can trace horses' bloodlines back to europe, Why can't I trace mine back to africa? Why? Coming up Emmitt smith tries to find the link To his family's white ancestry.
Do you think my hunch is correct, That samuel is the father of mariah? And later - Ooh! He gets crucial dna information Which could lead him to the motherland of africa.
That's good news.
So far, emmitt smith has gone back Almost 200 years through some of the darkest times In american history.
But he's still trying to piece together The life of his ancestor mariah.
He's trying to find the link to his family's white ancestry.
Steven deyle, one of the top experts in american slavery, Is going to help emmitt better understand The life of mariah And attempt to answer the question Of why the puryears kept the family together.
We can suspect that she was probably born Here in mecklenburg county around 1815.
She was born on a farm.
It's almost certain that her mother was a slave Owned by samuel.
I've always wondered how she became a mulatto, And right now it appears That samuel may have been mariah's father.
Do you think my hunch is correct, That samuel is the father of mariah? I would put money on the fact That--that samuel was mariah's father.
And why? Because when most slave owners Impregnated their slave women, They usually sold the child And the child's mother away Because the slave owner's wife Did not like to have these constant reminders Of their husband's infidelities shoved in their face.
This is somewhat the case with mariah.
When she gets old enough to be on her own, Samuel gets her out of the house And gives mariah to alexander.
The reason I think while alexander was engaged In this horrible, horrible traffic And why he didn't sell mariah Is because he recognized mariah as his sister, As his family.
But I think it's very, very likely That mariah's birth was-- - rape.
Her birth was not willing.
Samuel was cold and heartless.
That's right.
But you also have to realize that samuel Was your great-great-great- great-great-grandfather.
I know.
I know.
I know.
I'm glad my heart is not like his.
That much I do know.
I'm glad too.
Oh, my gosh.
And I'm glad he doesn't know me.
I think one of the things That's so inspirational about mariah Is that she had all of her children with her After emancipation.
She had to have seen Thousands and thousands of kids just like her Being torn from their parents And then, you know, be sent to somebody Who could do with them whatever they wanted.
And so she was lucky, But I also think the reason mariah survived Was because her second child that was born was a girl.
And mariah, I think very astutely, Named this girl mary.
So she named her first daughter after alexander's wife.
Right.
To constantly remind them that she was family.
I mean, her whole life, she was walking a tightrope.
You know, she had one foot in black slavery, The other foot in this white family.
And she never fell off.
The skillfulness of a slave woman To have that witted-ness To balance both sides, Was extremely courageous of her.
She was lucky, but she also made her own luck.
Yeah, she made her own luck.
She created her own luck.
In a time period when half of all black families Were torn apart, she somehow survived And kept her kids.
I mean, this is really one of the most incredible stories I've ever come across.
As far as mariah goes and tracing beyond her, I think that she will probably be the end of the line.
And I really don't think you'll be able to go past that.
And the reason is because there are no more records.
I've traced my family back six generations And almost 200 years.
From my grandmother erma lee To the watsons in burnt corn, alabama And to the amazing mariah And my slave owner ancestors in mecklenburg, virginia.
I feel disappointed That I've not been able to go any farther, And it appears that I've hit a brick wall.
But I'm also excited because I discovered mariah, And within mariah, I see a woman of strength, Great strength.
Finding mariah is part closure.
Now I wanna see what's behind mariah.
I'm just looking for information So I can connect with my roots.
I have my dna results coming this morning.
Maybe I can get some breakthrough.
- Good morning.
- A pleasure meeting you, megan.
I understand you have some dna That possibly can help me break through this wall And go further.
Well, I think we can help a little bit with that wall.
Yeah, yeah.
- Okay.
What if I were to tell you that you're roughly 7% native american? Wow! - Yeah.
- That's nice.
Now, you also have roughly 12% european.
- 12% european.
- Mm-hmm.
SoDoes that confirm up the puryears? Well, it suggests That you probably have several european ancestors - Several.
- In your family tree.
Yeah.
- Really.
- Yeah.
Oh, my gosh.
Oh, my gosh.
Okay, what this leaves us with Is that you're 81% african.
- 81% african.
- Yeah.
81 percentage is actually one of the highest I've ever seen.
- Really? - Yeah.
And I've never seen any african-american results Be 100% african.
So you are Quintessentially african.
Well, that confirms Yeah.
That's good news.
That's good news.
See, you do have a lot of african ancestors.
Now, in terms of telling where they came from, Your family, both your paternal and maternal branches, Seem to be from this neck of the woods.
So we're talking, you know, benin, The slave coast area.
Ooh! We gotta go to africa.
We have to go! We gotta go to africa.
Coming up, Emmitt smith goes back to africa And makes a shocking discovery.
It's a beautiful place But yet, a lot of cruelty happened here.
And later He has an emotional reunion with his wife.
I have found what I was looking for.
Emmitt smith has been on an incredible journey Into his family history.
It's taken him back 200 years And back to the motherland of africa.
The results of his dna are in And indicate that he's 81% african From the region of benin.
This area of benin Is called a slave coast Which was the second biggest exporter of slaves During the slave trading period.
It's kind of like being in the United States When you think of all the things that happened over there And the trafficking of slaves from virginia Down to alabama.
It's kind of the same thing.
It's just here in africa.
I know now that some of my ancestors Came from this coastline, And it's a beautiful place.
But yetA lot of cruelty happened here.
I've come to the ouidah museum of history Which is a converted slave fort To find out more about my african heritage.
- How you doing? - You're welcome.
- Emmitt smith.
- I'm falola.
Falola, I'm trying to find some information About the african slave trading That was going on right here in ouidah.
The slaves, they reside here Just to check if they are resistant.
Then they are brought to the ship For the - For the voyage.
For the voyage.
So what you're telling me is this courtyard right here Served as a mechanism for The slaves to be weeded out from the strong and the weak.
And the strong were the ones Who were taken to the ships For the voyage to america Or wherever else they needed to go.
Yeah.
Obviously, without them surviving, I wouldn't be here today.
We can't say for sure, But we may have come back to the origin Of where mariah's parents, grandparents, And great-grandparents could have been from.
And it is painful to be right here And to stand and know what transpired from this spot.
I've been invited to a remote village Which I've been told would give me A window into the lives of my ancestors.
Okay, mede, a lot of kids around.
Give me the story of this school.
The children here have been collected From everywhere in the country To be educated here.
Where are these children's parents? Many of them have no parents here.
They have been collected to withdraw them From what we call here children trafficking.
- Children trafficking.
- Yeah.
There's still slavery and trafficking Going on right here in africa.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And now they're trafficking young children, Boys and girls of all ages.
Yeah.
That's it.
When the traffickers come in the village, The poor people sell their children.
Hmm.
That's unfortunate.
When these kids are sold off from their parents Into slavery, What type of jobs do these young people do? The boys mostly work on the granite mines.
- Granite mines? - Yeah.
And the girls mostly work in the market To sell things for the traffickers.
Wow.
I understand it.
I feel it.
My ancestors were trafficked into slavery In the United States A long time ago, over 200 years ago.
But to know that it's still happening in modern time Is tragic.
Any one of these kids could be mariah or the next mariah.
When you have to sell your kids into slavery So you can survive, it's heartbreaking.
Back in america, People don't understand how well we have it.
They need to come down here and see this.
This is their normal way of life.
And most of them probably don't know any different.
I came from america To see where my ancestors were from.
Now that I know more about the motherland Mm-hmm.
And the history of this country, I wish them all well And much success in the future.
oh whoa, yeah ma ma ma ma ma ma ma I couldn't come to the motherland Without sharing my experiences with my wife pat.
So she's come to join me in ouidah.
It's been a great experi, Traveling to burnt corn, Even up in mecklenburg, virginia And in boynton county And even right here in africa, I have found what I was looking for.
AndAnd You all right, baby? I found what I was looking for.
It's like god has a way of showing, you know And I look at it that way.
I look at it as god has his way of saying The journey was worth it.
And I can hear my ancestors-- I can feel it.
I can hear it.
They're crying out, "thank you.
Thank you.
"my soul is not lost.
"my great-great-great-great great-great-grandson "emmitt james smith iii has found me And the prodigal son has come back home.
" They would be proud.
people get ready there's a train a-comin' you don't need no baggage you just get on board all you need is faith to hear the diesels hummin' you don't need no ticket you just thank the lord I feel like this story, my personal story, Will shed light on a whole lotta issues.
In alabama, the crying of the slaves Saying, "I am now found.
" I think their souls can move on to heaven.
This has been such a powerful journey for me.
I feel like my eyes has been opened even wider Than they were before.
I justFeel good.
I feel good.
I feel clean.
And so history is not "his story" anymore.
His story is really my story right now.
you just thank the lord