8.3 1 h 34 min 2020 18+. "So, I thought Dad could do something about that," she said. I can't believe that I had no idea that this crap went on until the 1960's! Dec. 20, 2003 -- As Mae Miller tells it, she spent her youth in Mississippi as a slave, "picking cotton, pulling corn, picking peas, picking butter beans, picking string beans, digging potatoes. Timothy Smith pointed out that the film gives meaning to the human experience and how most people are yet enslaved on one level or another. There were other times she would need to take her shoes off. She didn't get her freedom until 1961, when she ran away from the plantation and found . A doctor told Mae that she was infertile, possibly from being raped. [16], Like most peons, the Wall family was not permitted to leave the land, was illiterate, and were under the impression that "all black people were being treated like that". Slavery might have ended on paper after the Civil War, but many white landowners did Read More >> Plantation Records. Weaving reality with fiction making it a disturbing, yet entertaining movie. Seeing my ancestors perceived value written on a piece of paper changed me. One of the 20th-century slaves was Mae Louise Walls Miller and she didn't get her freedom until 1963. I saw time and time again, people were afraid to share their stories. "I remember thinking they're just going to have to kill me today, because I'm not doing this anymore. They feel this is not going on we have a Black president.' The National Guard was deployed in Atlanta, what does this mean as shootings, violence plague other American cities? They told me they had worked the fields for most of their lives. No matter if you are Black or White you will see yourself in the documentary, said Mr. Smith. From there, Harrell tracked down freedman contracts on her fathers side of the family that verified they were sharecroppers, and word spread around New Orleans leading to a number of speaking engagements. I saw Alice, starring Keke Palmer-Hustlers, Scream:The TV Series_tv; Common-John Wick:Chapter 2, Wanted; Jonny Lee Miller-Elementary_tv, Dracula 2000 and Alicia Witt-Orange is the New Black_tv, A Madea Christmas. Glad I didn't let negative reviews deter me from watching this movie; the director did a good job telling this story with the camera, the movie never drag or became boring. There was no fake racial reconciliation story of different cultures finally uniting and the white racists changing their ways. My mother always talked to me about our family history and the family members who had passed on. No cheesy and false unity. He has some stories that he can tell you when we were still held in slavery,' " Harrell-Miller recalled.At first, Harrell-Miller needed some convincing, but, "When I looked at the living conditions of the family, I understood very clearly how it's possible for people to live like that. No matter if you are Black or White you will see yourself in the documentary, said Mr. Smith. I fully sympathize with the struggle depicted in this movie. This is the shocking true story its inspired by. [3][4][5], Mae's story was unearthed when she spoke to historian Antoinette Harrell,[6] who highlighted it in the short documentary The Untold Story: Slavery in the 20th Century. According to the Smiths, there are many who know that slavery didn't end with the Emancipation Proclamation nearly 150 years ago. Sign up for our newsletter to get the best of VICE delivered to your inbox daily. IMDb's "F-rated" films denote movies that recognize the women behind and in front of cameras, highlighting works like 'Lady Bird' and 'Hustlers.' . 1. Relatives & Associates. Trivia. Summary. Along with Mae Louise Miller, the film also features commentary from activist/comedian Dick Gregory, Harvard law professor Charles Ogletree and others. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. We thought everybody was in the same predicament. When Louise Mae Miller was born on 7 April 1923, in Allen, Ohio, United States, her father, Marion Henry Miller, was 30 and her mother, Mary Edith Hess, was 28. "I just remember [Cain Sr.] was a jolly type, smiling every time I saw him." They'll kill us.' She was held as a slave in Gillsburg, Miss., and escaped to Kentwood, La. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. ABCNEWS' John Donvan contributed to this report. It became a chance to find out who we were and where we came from as descendants of enslaved people. Carrie and her child Thomas had been appraised at $1,100. The trailer opens up with a wide-angle view of a colonial-looking house, eerie undertones reminiscent of Get Out and Jonny Lee Miller referring to the Black people sitting patiently as domestic livestock. There were also Polish, Hungarian, and Italian immigrants, as well other nationalities, who got caught up in these situations in the American South. What can any living person do to me? When asked about the possibility of running away, she admitted that she didnt because, What could you run to? By ABC News Dec. 20, 2003 -- As Mae Miller tells it, she spent her youth in Mississippi as a slave, "picking cotton, pulling corn, picking peas, picking butter beans, picking string beans, digging potatoes. [12], Mae alleges that, starting at 5 years old, she was repeatedly raped along with her mother by the white men of the Gordon family. It was a perfectly enjoyable film. Truly don't see why this is being rated so poorly. She was called to white family's house and told to clean it. | Nearly five years after the Waterford meeting, however, Mae Louise Walls Miller of Mississippi told Harrell that she didn't get her freedom until 1963. What a life they have gone through! She didn't get her freedom until 1961, when she ran away from the plantation and found a family that rescued her and her family. At another speaking engagement, Harrell was confronted after a talk in Amite, Louisiana by a woman named Mae Louise Walls Miller who told her that she didn't get her freedom until 1962, which was two years before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed granting Black people a host of legal rights and protections. This was a top-notch production with excellent acting all around, maybe especially Johnny, who was a truly good sport to take the meanie role. The film uncovers modern-day slavery in the Mississippi Delta in 2009. The Slavery Detective. These plantations are a country unto themselves. However, I also believe there are still African families who are tied to Southern farms in the most antebellum sense of speaking. Some Black people in the Southern states remained enslavedwell into the 1960s. The Cotton Pickin' Truth. A few times we sat together with Mae and the other siblings. They were born in the 1930s and '40s into a world where their father, Cain Wall, now believed to be 105 years old, had already been forced into slave labor. A trailer for the film can be viewed at http://www.theprofitmusic.com. I took a lot of garbage there all the time. Mae Miller is 79 years old and was born on 08/24/1943. The way he looked must have reminded Cain of someone from the farm. Hurling truth at Falsehood Nation of Islam responds to lies of Atty. And the retro vibe revisiting the 70s (which honestly may be lost on current filmgoers) actually works more often than it fails. Who would you go to? Since that time, Harrell has continued her research and documenting their story. A notable case is Mae Louise Wall Miller, who wasn't granted freedom until 1963. This was the film's inspiration. One day I walked with Mae deep into the woods to see the old green creek she always spoke about. Harrell reveals that a lot of these kinds of stories are still not told because of this established fear of repercussion. It's because racial classification has always mattered for the sake of societal hierarchy. I don't think there are any specifics that the film doesn't advertise in the trailer or descriptions, though I do believe they should have found a better way to market it that would create more intrigue. -- minus three stars. Harrell talked "to many [people] throughout Louisiana that was afraid for their lives, so they wouldn't talk about being held in slavery. #peonage #slavery #Aboriginal #Israelites #Deuteronomy #blm #slavery #truthfullyhonest #cancelled community #Ghana #Africa #Karen original sound. Millers father tried to flee the property, but was caught by other landowners who returned him to the farm where he was brutally beaten in front of his family. Our babies are dying, where are our friends? She was a fearless beautiful spirit and has left a gigantic void. SO WHAT!!! It is out of sight and out of mind for those who know slavery exists, he added. Reminded Me Of The Old Black Exploitation Movies, It makes you think and the action makes you seat on the edge of your seat. When I met Mae, her father Cain was still alive. But the people told my brothers, they go, 'You better go get her.' This has to be true. Durwood Gordon, who was younger than 12 when the Wall family worked on the Gordon farm, claimed that the family worked for his uncle Willie Gordon (d. 1950s) and cousin William Gordon (d. 1991). This situation had them living their lives as 20th-century slaves. Her father, Cain Wall, lost his land by signing a contract he couldn't read that. | . Youd be forgiven for thinking the movie is set before the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 but actually, thats part of the intrigue of this trailer. To begin kudos to everyone who saw the vision to bring this film to life. People often ask, "Why bring race into it?" They feel this is not going on we have a Black president.' One major example of 20th century enslaved people is the case of Mae. ", Second Consolidated and Amended Complaint and Jury Demand, "Black People in the US Were Enslaved Well into the 1960s", "Some Black Americans Were Still Living in Chattel Slavery 100 Years After Emancipation Proclamation, Historian Discovers", "The enslaved black people of the 1960s who did not know slavery had ended", "Research shows slaves remained on Killona plantation until 1970s", "Black People Were Enslaved in the US Until as Recently as 1963", "Is Anyone Shocked That Slavery Continued a Century After Emancipation? Antoinette Harrell | All Rights Reserved. So [peons] had no outlet to talk to anyone under peonage". Although, some of the supporting actors need abit more acting experience but overall, it was a good story whether it is true or not. To understand this movie, you need to understand this FACT so that you won't mistake this for science fiction or some sort of 2022 Blaxploitation film. [4][12][13] Mae stated to NPR that "maybe I wasn't free, but maybe it can free somebody else. The family didnt have TV, so Mae just assumed everyone lived the same way her brothers and sisters did. | It does not deserve its current 4.4 rating. "You know, I told him, said, 'I'm gonna run away again.' Black history would have new heroes if we can go back and rewrite the history of the Old South. At the end of the harvest, this group was always told they did not make any profit, and were told they had to try again next year. But even that turned out to be less than true. The most prominent example of this, on which the movie is based, is the life of Mae Louise Walls Miller. Her father, Cain, couldnt take the suffering anymore and tried to flee the property by himself in the middle of the night. I don't want to tell you. Harrell described the case of Mae Louise Walls Miller, who didn't get her freedom until 1963, when she was about 14. Alan Dershowitz, Police traffic stops in nations capital disproportionately target Blacks, A Call to Action to address Covid-19 in Black Chicago, KOBE: His Life, Legend and Legacy of Excellence, About Harriett and the Negro Hollywood Road Show, Skepticism greets Jay-Z, NFL talk of inspiring change, The painful problem of Black girls and suicide, Exploitation of Innocence - Report: Perceptions, policies hurting Black girls, Big Ballin: Big ideas fuel a fathers Big Baller Brand and brash business sense, Super Predators: How American Science Created Hillarys Young Black Thugs, Pt. 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