[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. It does not get more dramatic than the story the Miller sisters told about life as slaves in Mississippi. 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. Showing all 2 items. There were other times she would need to take her shoes off. Wow! That evening still covered in blood, Mae ran away through the woods. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. There isnt much there anymore in terms of the farm. These plantations are a country unto themselves. This movie got me fired up in the best way. We ate like hogs.. The story has a couple of great fantasies: people from old times shocked at technology, plus punishing slave owners. Miller told her about how she and her mother were raped and beaten when they went to the main house to work. 2023 Black Youth Project. She and her family were unaware that things had changed, as they had no TV or other access to the outside world; they just assumed their situation was like that for all black people. I told you my story because I have no fear in my heart. People often ask, "Why bring race into it?" 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. Several months later, Harrell would meet a woman named Mae Louise Walls Miller who didn't receive her freedom until 1963. Each time she repeated a story, I felt like she was trying to give me a message. Mae Wall, the five-year-old girl did not lose her hunger to be free. Black history would have new heroes if we can go back and rewrite the history of the Old South. 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. [12][15][17] They were repeatedly beaten by plantation owners,[18] often including whips or chains. Seeing my ancestors perceived value written on a piece of paper changed me. After the show I prayed a lot and my dad had been wanting to do a documentary and God told me this is the documentary he ought to do, said Tobias Smith, who is also an independent hip hop recording artist. I loved it. And the retro vibe revisiting the 70s (which honestly may be lost on current filmgoers) actually works more often than it fails. 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. The way he looked must have reminded Cain of someone from the farm. That white family took her in and rescued the rest of the Walls later that night. 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. This is the shocking true story its inspired by. Its time travel at its most hopeful, something Palmer recently commented on in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. Trivia. 8.3 1 h 34 min 2020 18+. -- minus three stars. The only fact that seemed certain was that slavery ended with the passing of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. 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. They were afraid to give this information to me, even behind closed doors decades later. Yeah, sure. 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. To most folks, it just isnt worth the risk. The website Movie Insider unnecessarily credited this movie twice, even though the first could've just changed the release date without making another movie profile. 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. Her name is Mae Louise Walls Miller | She escaped Waterford Plantation in 1963. 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. Alice may be a work of fiction but its proximity to reality will be the scariest thing about it, we feel. 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). Along with Mae Louise Miller, the film also features commentary from activist/comedian Dick Gregory, Harvard law professor Charles Ogletree and others. We ate like hogs. 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. Keke Palmer was always such a great actress (fun fact, she's four days younger than me). Antoinette Harrell | All Rights Reserved. Antoinette Harrell uncovered the story of Miller, By entering my email I agree to Stylists. We thought everybody was in the same predicament. Opening the suppressed memories upset him so much he ended up in the hospital. The elder Smith said talking about the documentary and pre-showings of the film revealed that a significant number of people know firsthand, based on having family members still on the plantations, or themselves growing up in slavery but choose to remain silent. I knew him to be good people, good folks, Christian. While we cant wait to watch the movie for ourself once its released on 18 March,Alicedoes highlight important true events that, until now, have often been left untold. The elder Smith said talking about the documentary and pre-showings of the film revealed that a significant number of people know firsthand, based on having family members still on the plantations, or themselves growing up in slavery but choose to remain silent. One day a woman familiar with my work approached me and said, Antoinette, I know a group of people who didnt receive their freedom until the 1950s. She had me over to her house where I met about 20 people, all who had worked on the Waterford Plantation in St. Charles Parish, Louisiana. [21][19] Mae recounted that she was threatened with violence to keep this abuse secret from her father: "They told me, 'If you go down there and tell [your father, Cain Wall Sr.], we will kill him before the morning.' It became a chance to find out who we were and where we came from as descendants of enslaved people. We thought this was just for the black folks.. Instead, American Justice Department records reveal a more sinister tale of prosecutions throughout the 20th century against white people who continued to keep Black people in involuntary servitude. Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all." She was called to white family's house and told to clean it. 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. IMDb's "F-rated" films denote movies that recognize the women behind and in front of cameras, highlighting works like 'Lady Bird' and 'Hustlers.' . [4][12][13] Mae stated to NPR that "maybe I wasn't free, but maybe it can free somebody else. 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. She only knew so many stories, so oftentimes she would tell the same ones over and over again. She had grown up not wearing shoes and said sometimes her feet felt uncomfortable when she wore them. [4] Mae's sister Annie Wall recounted that "the whip would wrap around your body and knock you down". Do I believe Maes family was the last to be freed? "You know, I told him, said, 'I'm gonna run away again.' 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. Mae refused and sassed the farm owners wife when she told her to work. 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 saw time and time again, people were afraid to share their stories. She married John William Herrin on 21 June 1904, in Alton, Madison, Illinois, United States. Speaking to ABC News, Miller said: They beat us. Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all.". Only mistake these folks made was putting a black face on the cover and-- 'boom!' We want to make people aware about what's going on so we can stop what's going on, Tobias Smith said. It also set forth the direction of my life. Slavery will continue to redefine itself for African Americans for years to come. Only then did the Wall family learn that their peonage status had been illegal. "Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all". [15] Historian Antoinette Harrell said that in some districts, "the sheriff, the constable, all of them work together. ", Mae Miller said she didn't run away because, "What could you run to?". "I remember thinking they're just going to have to kill me today, because I'm not doing this anymore. 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. She was held as a slave in Gillsburg, Miss., and escaped to Kentwood, La. ), the trick to appreciating this one is to skip the first 30 mins (trust me!) 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. They didnt feed us. This Country was built by Black people and we made a lot of money for the white people. What a life they have gone through! ", "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. The Thriller Blends Fiction With Reality", "How Keke Palmer found power and hope in the story of a woman's escape from slavery in the 1970s", "Alice: Keke Palmer stars in this upcoming revenge thriller but do you know the shocking true story it's inspired by? This cycle kept them on the land and some of those people were tied to that tract of land until the 1960s. #peonage #slavery #Aboriginal #Israelites #Deuteronomy #blm #slavery #truthfullyhonest #cancelled community #Ghana #Africa #Karen Alice (Keke Palmer)is a slave on a plantation in Georgia. If this "hi-concept" Hollywood lark were any more woke, the DVD would come with a free rooster. "It's the worst I ever heard of, so I don't know what you name it," Annie Miller said. 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. "They didn't feed us. I am glad her brother Arthur is continuing to tell the Walls family story. 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. Pretty pathetic. To anyone that thinks this is an "alternate reality" piece though, this kind of thing happened. 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". Mae walked in after the lecture was over, demanding to speak with me. "[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". Something in her soul told her she was no longer a slave. 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. 1. We didn't eat like dogs because they do bring a dog to a certain place to feed dogs. You are still on the plantation.. She told Vice: Do I believe Maes family was the last to be freed? I tracked down Freedmen contracts of the Harrell side of my family that proved that they were sharecroppers. . . Or more than likely I just wasn't taught the truth on this, like with so many other aspects of American History! As well as Millers story, Harrell has unearthed multiple other shocking stories of enslaved people in Americas southern states like Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and Florida. [3], No legal documentation has yet been found to document the atrocities that Mae describes. Written down alongside other personal belongings that included spoons, forks, hogs, cows, and a sofa were my great great grandparents, Thomas and Carrie Richardson. 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. It was like she was trying to tell me that if I wanted to know more about who we were, I would have to dig deeper. Vice Modern Day Plantation Life in the 1960s https://bit.ly/2oLk64j, The Selma Times Journal Mae Louise Wall Miller https://bit.ly/30xWcty, People Magazine Mae Louise Wall Miller https://bit.ly/2NTIccb, The Root The Arthur Wall Story https://bit.ly/2JFk2g9, The Daily Press Woman to Discuss Her Time Being Enslaved https://bit.ly/2Shf5xP. But the people told my brothers, they go, 'You better go get her.' 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. 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. Alice is inspired by the very real-life history of Black Americans who remained enslaved after the Emancipation Proclamation. Here she would be raped by whatever men were present. The ominous (and rather empowering) trailer reveals that Alice cant write and moves around almost like a ghost. When I met Mae, her father Cain was still alive. Harrell describes the case of Mae Louise Walls Miller, who did not get her freedom until 1963, when she was about 14. Mae died in 2014. Most shocking of all was their fear. 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. "[12] Mae recounted first running away at 9 years old, but she was returned to the farm by her brothers, where her father told her that if she ran away, "they'll kill us. SO WHAT!!! Durwood also denied Miller's claims of rape: "No way, knowing my uncle the way I do. Antoinette Harrell unearthed the stories of slaves in the south, well over 100 years after Emancipation. No matter if you are Black or White you will see yourself in the documentary, said Mr. Smith. We thought this was just for the black folks. When asked about the possibility of running away, she admitted that she didnt because, What could you run to? 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. There were also Polish, Hungarian, and Italian immigrants, as well other nationalities, who got caught up in these situations in the American South. The Cotton Pickin' Truth. I don't want to tell nobody.". They beat us, Mae Miller said. But even that turned out to be less than true. "[7] Ron Walters, a scholar of African-American politics, noted that letters archived by the NAACP "tell us that in a lot of these places, that [people] were kept in bondage or semi-bondage conditions in the 20th century [in] out-of-the way places, certainly where the law authorities didn't pay much attention to what was going on. (1 viewing, 6/14/2022). Then the filmmakers were taken to Glendora, Miss., and Webb, Miss., where they said they saw and documented the existence of plantations. We ate like hogs. 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. Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all." "They beat us," Mae Miller said. Start a discussion Categories: B-Class AfC articles #peonage #slavery #Aboriginal #Israelites #Deuteronomy #blm #slavery #truthfullyhonest #cancelled community #Ghana #Africa #Karen She didn't get her freedom until 1961, when she ran away from the plantation and found . Her father, Cain Wall, lost his land by signing a contract he couldn't read that. The 57-year-old Louisiana native has dedicated more than 20 years to peonage research. [4] The Wall family was not paid in money or in kind with food: "They beat us. A few times we sat together with Mae and the other siblings. In the process of interviewing Ms. Miller about her life as a 20th century slave in America, the Smiths learned from her that slavery was still being practiced in Mississippi and Louisiana today. The story is based on the very real history of black Americans still being enslaved even after the Emancipation Proclamation. Millers father lost his land by signing a contract he could not read, which subsequently locked him and his family into a land peonage state. But we also see her explore her Black identity through the art, music and styles that political activist Frank (Common) introduces her to. That said, there is an underlying emotional charge to this odd tale that actually deserves an audience.