Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North.

In Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North, first-time filmmaker Katrina Browne makes a troubling discovery - her New England ancestors were the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history. She and nine fellow descendants set out to retrace the Triangle Trade: from their old hometown in Rhode Island to slave forts in Ghana, and sugar plantation ruins in Cuba. Step by step, they uncover the vast extent of Northern complicity in slavery while also stumbling through the minefield of contemporary race relations. Traces of the Trade offers powerful new perspectives on the black/white divide.

The issues the DeWolf descendants are confronted with dramatize questions that apply to the nation as a whole: What, concretely, is the legacy of slavery—for diverse whites, for diverse blacks, for diverse others? Who owes who what for the sins of the fathers of this country? What history do we inherit as individuals and as citizens?

Holly Fulton and William Peebles will present the documentary and facilitate dialogue after the screening.

Holly Fulton, 53, is one of the 10 DeWolf descendants in the documentary. She grew up in Rhode Island and has an MA in Teaching and an MA in Psychology. Holly has been a French & ESL teacher and a diversity trainer. She lives in Concord, CA, and gives presentations & facilitates discussions as outreach for Traces of the Trade. Holly is also an active member of the Coming to the Table community program which is addressing the legacies of slavery in the United States. She is CTTT’s chair of the Youth Committee. E-mail Holly at hfulton [at] tracesofthetrade.org.

William M. Peebles (Bill) is retired from a career as a psychotherapist and a pastor. He is a Spiritual Director for those on a spiritual path, particularly men. He’s interested in the Be Present model, Faith and Money Network and Harvest Time, growing organic food, singing, and continuing to work at eliminating the “isms” that harm us all. He and his wife Holly have been facilitating discussions of the film in New England and in the San Francisco Bay Area over the past 2 years. E-mail Bill at bpeebles [at] tracesofthetrade.org