Very early on in the process of trying to sell 'The Summer Prince,' I was told, 'Slavery seems to be very important to this society - is that on purpose?' Well, duh.
Besides paid white laborers, there was everywhere a class of white servants bound without wages for a term of years, and a more miserable class of Negro slaves.
Many attempts had been made by colonial legislatures to cut off or to tax the importation of slaves.
We have far more options for black Americans to tell stories outside of slavery, but whenever it comes to slavery, it's an uncomfortable subject. Why? Because it's the most unresolved subject in American history.
I think enslavement has evolved to what may seem appropriate to this day's generation. Modern enslavement is imprisonment.
It's crazy: the first black man to actually step foot in America came as a free man, as an explorer, with the Spaniards. That's something for me - as a black American, it gives me a little bit of pride because we were free and respected somewhere else before slavery became what it was.
A lot of people are afraid of the idea of enslavement, and that's because it's tied to so much shame and guilt... That is the big elephant in the room, but a part of why we're afraid to attack that subject matter is because of the way we've been taught about it.
I remember, growing up as a kid, history class was very washed-over. They didn't really get into the gritty bits of slavery. It's a very, very small section in the history books. It's not something they really touch on directly with American curriculums.
I can literally count on one hand how many slave stories have gotten notoriety over the past few years.
There's a really great documentary called 'Many Rivers,' which documents the totality of slavery from its inception, and then it gives you a little history on how America came to prominence. It's crazy - the first black man to actually step foot in America came as a free man, as an explorer, with the Spaniards.
