Traces of the Trade

I like the format of the film. We got to hear and see everyone's reaction to what they were learning. My first reaction was that I did not know as much about the slave trade as I thought, even though I have learned it for so long in high school. It opened my eyes to seeing that the North was just as much affiliated with the slave trade as the South. They were just as guilty. Even the whole communities were effect and revolved around slavery. The con was how they displaced so many blacks, however without the slave trade I doubt we would be the country we are today.
In addition to this, what really got me was when they were in the African country and there was a black lady who said she was expecting not to see any whites. She distanced herself from the family. And then Browne brings up a great question: "What is our responsibility?" After understanding the inhumanity of her family's ancestors, she says: "It's important to roll up our sleeves to deal with what we all inherited from our country's history." What really got me was that Browne learned the past and was trying to change the future. However the black lady who didn't want anything to do with white people, I feel was still living in the past. And I think this is why there is a misunderstanding. There is apart of Black society that think the are entitled to a lot because of the past. However, life has changed: affirmative action was put in effect to help better the blacks. And now in schools, anti-racism classes are taught, I took one in my high school. I think that is the answer to Browne's question. Maybe one day the color of one's skin would have no meaning about their race.