December 4, 2019
Page 13
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Slave Quarters and Reconciling the Past
Tours help us
lean into our
discomfort
t raCey l. r ogers
Thomas Jefferson may have
written that all men were created
equal in the Declaration of In-
dependence. But he, along with
so many of his fellow plantation
owners, was still complicit in the
institution of slavery.
Jefferson’s famous Monticello
plantation, a picturesque venue
most popular today for hosting
weddings and other special oc-
casions, was a place of terror for
those African captives who would
never gain freedom in Jefferson’s
lifetime.
During a recent visit to Mon-
ticello, I learned that Jefferson
personally kept upwards of 600
people in bondage. It was ironic
— the very man I was taught to
revere in history class kept my an-
cestors as property.
My trip to the plantation was
emotional. I had heard stories of
the slave quarters along Mulber-
ry Row, and the recent discovery
of unmarked graves of enslaved
people who died at Monticello.
Seeing the place firsthand was an
altogether heavy experience.
But I also felt something else
on that trip — something surpris-
ing: relief.
by
I had been certain that the dark
history of slavery would be wa-
tered down at a tourist destination
like Monticello. But thankfully,
that was not the case. Instead, I
was impressed by the site’s thor-
ough, honest, and critical depic-
tion of slave life at Monticello.
Our tour guide shared the bru-
tality endured by slaves along Mul-
berry Row. He spoke of how they
lived, and how they were severely
punished to the point of death.
Our tour guide retold the radi-
cal truth of what my ancestors ex-
One man asked if Thomas Jeffer-
son had been a “kind slave own-
er,” to which our tour guide —
himself a white man — responded
there was no such thing.
Another woman commented
that the slave quarters weren’t “so
bad.” Our tour guide responded
with a simple question: “Would
you live there?”
Such questions are not uncom-
mon, and reports abound of white
visitors complaining about having
to confront facts about slavery
during plantation tours. All this
During a recent visit to
Monticello, I learned that
Jefferson personally kept upwards
of 600 people in bondage. It was
ironic — the very man I was taught
to revere in history class kept my
ancestors as property.
perienced under the purveyance of
Thomas Jefferson. I was simulta-
neously angered by what I learned
and satisfied that this history was
offered in a way that demanded
compassion and understanding by
those present.
Yet, I was also appalled by the
comments and questions of some
of the white people on the tour.
makes it abundantly clear that
the history of slavery needs to be
taught with unwavering honesty,
whether when visiting a plantation
or developing school curricula.
White America needs to ac-
knowledge that, like it or not,
racism is alive and well today
because of the horrors of our past
that helped shape who we are as a
society. Racism is as American as
Apple pie; to shirk away from the
awful details is as shameful as the
details themselves.
After 250 years of chattel slav-
ery, and another 100 years of
Jim Crow, one can only imagine
the trauma Blacks have endured.
Imagine our ancestors being
bought, sold, beaten and separated
from their families. Imagine the
lynchings that took place in this
country, and the justice that went
unserved.
If it’s difficult for white Amer-
icans to discuss racism, how must
Black Americans must feel?
In her book White Fragility, au-
thor Robin DiAngelo wrote that
many white people lack the “ra-
cial stamina” to even engage in
such conversations. As an activ-
ist, I would have to agree. But it’s
hardly impossible, as the dedicat-
ed white tour guide at Monticello
showed. And it’s worth it.
It’s been 400 years since the
first enslaved Africans arrived on
these shores, and that’s why we
must talk about the history of race
in America. In doing so, while
bravely leaning into our discom-
fort, we heal. We reconcile our
history. We’re no longer beholden
to the guilt and shame of the past.
Humanity is restored.
Tracey L. Rogers is an entre-
preneur and activist living in Vir-
ginia. Distributed by OtherWords.
org.
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