|
|
|
Eastern Jackson County, MO —
It’s a good thing that we dedicate certain days or weeks or months to recognize significant people, places and events in our past. Otherwise, with as busy as everyone seems to be and with as fast as time is fleeting, we might forget to pause and pay our respects to honor our rich, diverse heritage.
February is Black History Month. Last year, when the Missouri Humanities Council awarded a grant to support the creation of a documentary, “Negroes to Hire,” who could have predicted its success? This documentary on slavery in Missouri was produced by Kansas City filmmaker Gary Jenkins, who will receive a historic preservation award from the Jackson County Historical Society at its annual awards dinner on Thursday, Jan. 20.
Despite the politically incorrect title, which was taken from a 19th century advertisement in the Liberty Tribune, this insightful look into a despicable chapter of Missouri history has been well received by hundreds of Missourians throughout this past year.
Documentaries such as this are based, in part, on archival resources. Jenkins based the film on the American Slave Narratives that were gathered in 17 states by out-of-work writers and journalists from 1936 to 1938 by the Federal Writers’ Project Works Projects Administration. That project, “Born in Slavery,” contains more than 2,300 first-person accounts of slavery and 500 black-and-white photographs of former slaves.
Of the approximately 90 narratives from Missouri, there are only two that we were able to find that remotely mention Jackson County specifically. However, the experience of one former slave was closely representative of another, and in doing so, inferences about their lives may be concluded.
Jenkins’ film “Negroes to Hire” also features commentaries by several educators who have published extensively on slavery, including Dr. Jimmy Johnson, who shared his great grandfather’s experience as a slave on the Miller Farm in Platte County and as a volunteer in the First Kansas Colored Regiment under Jim Lane. Dr. Johnson is also on the board of directors for the Jackson County Historical Society.
Other educators featured in the documentary include Dr. Diane Mutti-Burke from UMKC, Dr. Antonio Holland from Lincoln University; and, Dr. Harriet Frazier (retired from Central Missouri State University).
Jenkins grew up on a large farm in Clinton County, Mo. “Our family had farmhands who always lived in houses on the land and worked for us. I realized it must have been somewhat similar to how slaves worked closely with the owners during the 19th century on small Missouri farms. There were no large plantations here. I wanted to know more about slavery as it was practiced in Missouri, not the myth of slavery.”
It’s a good thing that we dedicate certain days or weeks or months to recognize significant people, places and events in our past. Otherwise, with as busy as everyone seems to be and with as fast as time is fleeting, we might forget to pause and pay our respects to honor our rich, diverse heritage.
February is Black History Month. Last year, when the Missouri Humanities Council awarded a grant to support the creation of a documentary, “Negroes to Hire,” who could have predicted its success? This documentary on slavery in Missouri was produced by Kansas City filmmaker Gary Jenkins, who will receive a historic preservation award from the Jackson County Historical Society at its annual awards dinner on Thursday, Jan. 20.
Despite the politically incorrect title, which was taken from a 19th century advertisement in the Liberty Tribune, this insightful look into a despicable chapter of Missouri history has been well received by hundreds of Missourians throughout this past year.
Documentaries such as this are based, in part, on archival resources. Jenkins based the film on the American Slave Narratives that were gathered in 17 states by out-of-work writers and journalists from 1936 to 1938 by the Federal Writers’ Project Works Projects Administration. That project, “Born in Slavery,” contains more than 2,300 first-person accounts of slavery and 500 black-and-white photographs of former slaves.
Of the approximately 90 narratives from Missouri, there are only two that we were able to find that remotely mention Jackson County specifically. However, the experience of one former slave was closely representative of another, and in doing so, inferences about their lives may be concluded.
Jenkins’ film “Negroes to Hire” also features commentaries by several educators who have published extensively on slavery, including Dr. Jimmy Johnson, who shared his great grandfather’s experience as a slave on the Miller Farm in Platte County and as a volunteer in the First Kansas Colored Regiment under Jim Lane. Dr. Johnson is also on the board of directors for the Jackson County Historical Society.
Other educators featured in the documentary include Dr. Diane Mutti-Burke from UMKC, Dr. Antonio Holland from Lincoln University; and, Dr. Harriet Frazier (retired from Central Missouri State University).
Jenkins grew up on a large farm in Clinton County, Mo. “Our family had farmhands who always lived in houses on the land and worked for us. I realized it must have been somewhat similar to how slaves worked closely with the owners during the 19th century on small Missouri farms. There were no large plantations here. I wanted to know more about slavery as it was practiced in Missouri, not the myth of slavery.”
Jenkins, a member of the Independent Filmmakers Coalition of Kansas City, participated in a discussion that described “Negroes to Hire” as a “profound and deep, giving insight into the struggle for dignity and freedom that has always been the core of the American Dream, the foundation of which was ironically built by and perverted by slavery. The battles to end slavery, the behavior of slave owners, and the actions of slaves and abolitionists are part of the American story and need to be told. ‘Negroes to Hire’ is moving and painful, but at its core offers hope and understanding for our country’s best future by exposing an aspect of its worst past. True tales of families torn apart, sexual abuse, whippings and the struggle to break free and control one’s destiny are brought forth and illustrated with historical documentation, reminding us that these evens happened just 150 years ago.”
Reservations for the Historical Society’s annual awards fundraising dinner may be made through Monday, Jan. 17. Individual tickets to the Grand Affair to be held at the Scarritt Grand Ballroom in downtown Kansas City are $75; $65 for JCHS members. Call Steve Noll at 816.461.1897.
