![]() The discovery of bloodlines generates a sense of self that can be profound - and can even alter how Black people look at themselves, Jackson said. Jackson’s story underscores the surge in Black people using various means to increase their connection to family members who came before them as a way of bolstering their identity. “Then, when I reread their story and what they went through, the emotion changed to an overwhelming hurt and sympathy for my family, imagining what my great-grandmother, Daffney, had to endure, giving birth during the escape and having enough faith and intestinal fortitude to push forward for not just her and her husband but her children. “First, I felt pride bursting out of every pore,” she said. ![]() The revelation elevated her self-esteem, she said, giving her a sense of self that had previously been absent. “Never could I imagine that my great-great-grandparents were freed and set on a path of my generation being born in Philadelphia because of her.” “Every year after that, Harriet Tubman was my only focus for my Black History Month reports."Īfter confirming the findings, “I cried like a baby,” Jackson said. “I watched the Harriet Tubman movie in third grade, and I felt a strong connection, but I didn’t know why,” Jackson said. Slaves flee Maryland for Delaware by the Underground Railroad, c. They would later be called the Cambridge 28, famous for the size of the group that escaped to freedom while carrying weapons to defend themselves, if necessary, and enduring three days of torrential rain. Jackson learned that her great-great-grandmother was Jeanette Cornish, whose grandfather was Aaron Cornish, born in 1822 in Cambridge, Maryland - the same town as Tubman.Īt 17, Aaron Cornish was among the 28 enslaved people Tubman led from the plantation on which they were kept. In 2021, after 19 years of probing, she struck Black family tree gold: an ancestral connection to the legendary abolitionist Harriet Tubman. The findings inspired her to learn more, and Jackson pressed on, spending hours that turned into years building out her family tree through searching archives in libraries and research centers, scanning microfilm and, as technology advanced, using online services. She said she went through the Whitepages, as actor Derrick Luke had in the movie, and located her father’s sister almost instantly and called her, which led to more relatives. “And that’s when I was inspired to start my search to find mine, just like he did,” Jackson said. ![]() Then she saw the 2002 movie “Antwone Fisher,” about a young sailor who had been in foster care and sought to learn more about his birth family. “So, I let it go.” Amber Jackson, who was inspired to learn about her ancestors after seeing the movie "Antwone Fisher." Courtesy of Amber Jackson They didn’t want to talk about it,” Jackson said. “They kind of gave you the illusion that Black people just showed up after everything was put together.”Īttempts to learn about her family history from older relatives were futile, she said. “They didn’t teach you the history of Black people in school,” she said. ![]()
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