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 didnt 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. Alice was fine. This is the shocking true story its inspired by. "[3] Mae recounted harvesting cotton, corn, peas, butter beans, string beans, potatoes. Harrell recounts that there was a great amount of trepidation on the part of the former slaves to tell their stories because in the Deep South there is great fear of what is colloquially referred to as old money. The families who owned and ran plantations, their original source of political power, still retained political power, moving from the plantations to the local government and big businesses. She married John William Herrin on 21 June 1904, in Alton, Madison, Illinois, United States. ", Mae Miller said she didn't run away because, "What could you run to?". She admitted that she feels very proud of the past, of my ancestors, what they did, and how Im here the fact were still standing and that were not extinct as a culture and as a people. Don't believe me, google Mae Louise Walls Miller, A little research might help you appreciate the premise more and perhaps break away from the THIS DOESN'T FIT IN WITH MY WORLD VIEW SO I AM GOING TO THROW MUD AT IT crowd. No matter if you are Black or White you will see yourself in the documentary, said Mr. Smith. Mae's father Cain Wall lost his land by signing a contract he couldn't read that had sealed his entire family's fate. "[12] Mae said that they didn't know their peonage was illegal; "matter of fact, I thought everybody was living that way". However, I also believe there are still African families who are tied to Southern farms in the most antebellum sense of speaking. I can't believe there were people who got away with slavery until my mothers generation here in America. The younger Smith said they reached out to Ms. Miller with their intentions, and decided doing the film was not economic-driven but was a mission.. It is out of sight and out of mind for those who know slavery exists, he added. They feel this is not going on we have a Black president.' Her father tried to escape but was brought back to the farm where he was savagely beaten in front of his wife and children. She was a fearless beautiful spirit and has left a gigantic void. But whatever. That said, this movie was well done and as shocking as the reality of the concept was it made a great revenge story! They believed that they might somehow get sent back to a plantation that wasnt even operating anymore. [3] [4] [5] 13 million people become unemployed after the Wall Street stock market crash of 1929 triggers what becomes . First off, I genuinely love Keke Palmer, Johnny Lee Miller and Common. "[3] Annie Wall recounted that the plantation owners said "you better not tell because we'll kill 'em, kill all of you, you n****rs". I fully sympathize with the struggle depicted in this movie. Even after Millers death in 2014, Harrell does not believe that Millers family is the last family to face such a fate in the Deep South. Alice is an upcoming revenge thriller film starring Keke Palmer as an enslaved woman who escapes and finds out shes transported to the year 1973. She told Vice: Do I believe Maes family was the last to be freed? 1. Strong people. When I saw the movie poster, then went to see the flick, the first act of the movie did not match what the poster was telling me this was going to be. I told you my story because I have no fear in my heart. We didnt know everybody wasnt living the same life that we were living. There was no fake racial reconciliation story of different cultures finally uniting and the white racists changing their ways. This movie got me fired up in the best way. The film is director Krystin Ver Lindens debut, and also stars Gaius Charles and Alicia Witt. The 70s were characterized perfectly, the acting was great, it was an interesting storyline, and it felt like a movie made in the 70s. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Intrigued, Harrell accepted an invitation to her house where the group gathered and told Harrell their story of being enslaved on the Waterford Plantation in St. Charles, Louisiana. 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. Durwood also denied Miller's claims of rape: "No way, knowing my uncle the way I do. A few times we sat together with Mae and the other siblings. Justice Department records tell of prosecutions, well into the 20th century, of whites who continued to keep blacks in "involuntary servitude," coercing them with threats on their lives, exploiting their ignorance of life and the laws beyond the plantation where they were born. "She said, 'I have to tell you my story. original sound. He cited his colleagues in the media industry who choose to focus on partying and frivolity, fearful of taking on a serious issue such as slavery in modern America. "I feel like my whole life has been taken," she said. Elements of the film's background are loosely based on the narrative of Mae Louise Walls Miller, who escaped from slavery in 1963. We want to make people aware about what's going on so we can stop what's going on, Tobias Smith said. The Miller sisters and their father, hospitalized for the past several months after suffering a heart attack have joined a class action lawsuit in Chicago seeking reparations for the 35 million African-Americans who are descendants of slaves. They were afraid to give this information to me, even behind closed doors decades later. And the retro vibe revisiting the 70s (which honestly may be lost on current filmgoers) actually works more often than it fails. Historian and genealogist Antoinette Harrell has uncovered cases of African Americans still living as slaves 100 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Where did they go? But the people told my brothers, they go, 'You better go get her.' Speaking to ABC News, Miller said: They beat us. What a life they have gone through! I don't want to tell you. Keke Palmer was always such a great actress (fun fact, she's four days younger than me). [4][12][13] Mae stated to NPR that "maybe I wasn't free, but maybe it can free somebody else. Poorly-made in most aspects. When Mae Louise Miller was born on 4 May 1881, in Alton, Madison, Illinois, United States, her father, George J Miller, was 25 and her mother, Mary Louise Schuck, was 25. One major example of 20th century enslaved people is the case of Mae. Copyright, 2019 The Final Call, FCN Publishing, Activists charge environmental poisoning and silent homicide in San Francisco, President spews more incendiary rhetoric as election draws closer, Covid-19 and the divine chastisement of Florida. As a young girl, Mae didn't know that her family's situation was. To begin kudos to everyone who saw the vision to bring this film to life. So [peons] had no outlet to talk to anyone under peonage". [12] Harrell believes the family suffered PTSD from their experiences. They had become debtors to the plantation owner and as a result, could not leave the property. No matter if you are Black or White you will see yourself in the documentary, said Mr. Smith. Which makes no sense. [2]Mae Louise Miller (born Mae Louise Wall; August 24, 1943 2014) was an American woman who was kept in modern-day slavery, known as peonage, near Gillsburg, Mississippi and Kentwood, Louisiana until her family achieved freedom in early 1961. Her family pleaded with her as the punishment would come down on all of them. The younger Smith said they reached out to Ms. Miller with their intentions, and decided doing the film was not economic-driven but was a mission.. Alice is inspired by the very real-life history of Black Americans who remained enslaved after the Emancipation Proclamation. Alice is inspired by the very real-life history of Black Americans who remained enslaved after the Emancipation Proclamation. I know the movie did not explain how Alice was able to transcend time, or how she was able to get the different characters to cross back and forth from the 1800s to 1973, but wasn't it wonderful to see how powerful black women would be if they had a fighting and equal chance. The beginning third is a cringeful reminder about American slavery (which btw has been going on throughout human history with all kinds of different races, not only black people, and which America helped to end worldwide). As we stood together looking into the water Maes words were forever seared into my soul. The story is based on the very real history of black Americans still being enslaved even after the Emancipation Proclamation. They still hold the power. Annie Miller was frightened to discuss the experience her family left behind 42 years ago. As a young girl, Mae didnt know that her familys situation was different from anyone elses. As I would realize, people are afraid to share their stories, because in the South so many of the same white families who owned these plantations are still running local government and big businesses. The Keke Palmer-led film may seem like it follows an intricately crafted and ludicrous plotline but actually, its inspired by very real-life events. I didn't have any expectations, so the switch about a third of the way in was a stun and it got better- way better than M. Night's story (his all have disappointing endings), which had similarities but wasn't the same. The school to prison pipeline and private penitentiaries are just a few of the new ways to guarantee that black people provide free labor for the system at large. In 1994, I started to look into historical records and public records. Slavery might have ended on paper after the Civil War, but many white landowners did Read More >> Plantation Records. I saw time and time again, people were afraid to share their stories. It does not deserve its current 4.4 rating. I ran to a place even worse than where I were. "It was so bad, I ran away" at age 9, Annie Miller told ABCNEWS' Nightline. The way he looked must have reminded Cain of someone from the farm. [4] In her 30s, Mae returned to school and learned to read and write. "[4] In early 1961, an aunt of Mae's from northern Alabama "sneaked us away" on a "horse and wagon" and helped them to relocate. Mae Miller is 79 years old and was born on 08/24/1943. I could never imagine going through something like that. SO WHAT!!! Several months later, Harrell would meet a woman named Mae Louise Walls Miller who didn't receive her freedom until 1963. Photo Source: Antionette Harrell. Black history would have new heroes if we can go back and rewrite the history of the Old South. I don't want to tell nobody.". The Slavery Detective. [4][20] Miller would get sent to the landowner's house and "raped by whatever men were present". Yes, slavery still exists in 2010 in Mississippi and Louisiana, says Timothy Arden Smith, who captured the story in a soon to be released documentary called The Cotton Pickin' Truth Still on the Plantation, which will premiere Sept. 23 at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African-American History in Detroit. This was a chance to learn a history we were never taught in school. 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. This is me -. Mae was 18. Photo by Nathan Benn/Corbis via Getty Images. We had to go drink water out of the creek. Antoinette Harrell | All Rights Reserved. People who hear these stories will often say, You should have gone to the police. You should have run sooner. But the land down here goes on forever. "I remember thinking they're just going to have to kill me today, because I'm not doing this anymore. We thought everybody was in the same predicament. I truly enjoyed this movie. Court Records. She was held as a slave in Gillsburg, Miss., and escaped to Kentwood, La. 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. It was clear they had never shared their individual stories with one another. The truth is Alice found her worth and it was realistic in the sense that the minds of the oppressors didn't change. When Mae was about 14, she decided she would no longer go up to the house. Mae refused and sassed the farm owners wife when she told her to work. Mae Wall, the five-year-old girl did not lose her hunger to be free. Ms. Miller was enslaved until 1961 and there is evidence of slavery today in different parts of America's South. The only fact that seemed certain was that slavery ended with the passing of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. 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. Harrell first began her work over twenty years ago; in 1994 she began to look into public and historical records and discovered that her ancestors belonged to Benjamin and Cecilia Bankston Richardson in 1853. Still On The Plantation is a documentary film that calls for the re-writing of American history as we know it. There's no excuse for it and I can't believe it was possible, well, I can believe, but you know What I truly can't believe are all the comments by people here claiming its all a bunch of "woke bs". People in denial I guess. So, I reckon it had to be slavery for it to be as bad as it were. Miller, who grew up poor, said her family didn't have a TV at the. Harrells groundbreaking work has exposed cases in her home state of Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Florida. When I met Mae, her father Cain was still alive. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Ron Walters, a political scientist who's an advocate for slavery reparations, also believes the Miller sisters' story. They feel this is not going on we have a Black president.' This situation had them living their lives as 20th-century slaves. [4] The Wall family was not paid in money or in kind with food: "They beat us. Now she not only believes the story, she has become something of a guardian angel in Mae Miller's life. To anyone that thinks this is an "alternate reality" piece though, this kind of thing happened. Reviews. [15], In 1963, Mae married Wallace Miller and sought to start a family. Soon enough people started requesting that I come and speak about how I was uncovering my familys story so they could do the same for themselves. In the 1970s, she became a glass-cutter. FAQ "They treated the dogs a whole lot better than they treated us. 2022 is already shaping up to be the year of impeccable film and, off the back of its success at this years Sundance Film Festival, Alice has just released a new trailer and its safe to say its firmly grabbed our attention. But even that turned out to be less than true. No. 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. Most times she and her mother were raped simultaneously alongside each other. 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. We knew our family had once been slaves in Louisiana. Antionette Harrell, historian and genealogist working to uncover hidden stories of post Emancipation slavery in the Deep South I couldnt believe what I was hearing. It became a chance to find out who we were and where we came from as descendants of enslaved people. These stories are more common than you think. This Louisiana funeral home is rediscovering it", "The Cotton Pickin TruthStill on the Plantation trailer", "The Hard Truth - Black history: Stolen stories", "Is the Movie 'Alice' Based on a True Story? Miller told her about how she and her mother were raped and beaten when they went to the main house to work. But he was picked up by some folks claiming they would help him. I took a lot of garbage there all the time. I met with Jordan Brewington and Read More >>, Antoinette Harrell is available for speaking engagements and lectures about the subjects Read More >>, Antoinette Harrell has spent countless hours in the National Archives in Read More >>. Smithsonian Institution historian Pete Daniel noted that "white people had the power to hold blacks down, and they weren't afraid to use it -- and they were brutal". Whatever it was, thats what you did for no money at all.. Krystin Ver Linden, Writer/Director needs unlimited budgets from now on! She was called to white family's house and told to clean it. I can't believe that I had no idea that this crap went on until the 1960's! One of the 20th-century slaves was Mae Louise Walls Miller and she didn't get her freedom until 1963. Pretty pathetic. 4/10 - I love Keke Palmer, but I'm unfortuantely afraid that this one turned out to be a rather huge miss in that it just was not in any way developed enough to be a full feature film and the arc just felt so lackluster. Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all." "They beat us," Mae Miller said. Harrell described the case of Mae Louise Walls Miller, who didn't get her freedom until 1963, when she was about 14. We very nearly do a double take when Alice escapes on to a road and nearly gets hit by a truck. She was hiding in the bushes by the road when a family rode by with their mule cart. - Mae Louise Walls Miller Historian and genealogist Antoinette Harrell has uncovered cases of African Americans still living as slaves 100 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Sign up for the latest news and must-read features from Stylist, so you don't miss out on the conversation. [4] However, her situation was hardly unique: White landowners used threats of violence worked with law enforcement to keep people in peonage. [4] Mae's sister Annie Wall recounted that "the whip would wrap around your body and knock you down". "They didn't feed us. Where I were slaves in Louisiana suffered PTSD from their experiences living the same life that we and! Mothers generation here in America when I met Mae, her father was!: `` they treated the dogs a whole lot better than they treated the dogs a lot. So [ peons ] had no idea that this crap went on until the 1960 's there were who. 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