The Past Is Not Dead

Harry Smith: Katrina Brown’s New Documentary Displays Difficult Road Toward Reconciliation

(CBS)  This column was written by CBS News Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith.

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"P.O.V." is a documentary series that runs on PBS. The premier this week featured a film by Katrina Brown called "Traces of the Trade."

Katrina is a descendant of one of the most prominent families in Bristol, Rhode Island. Bristol is famous because it has the oldest Fourth of July parade in the country. DeWolf is the family name. And a grand old DeWolf family house is now a museum there.

Katrina discovered the DeWolfs were slave traders. She invites some her cousins to help her uncover those roots. And the journey is painful, tearful and revealing. Long removed from a despicable past, it was difficult at first for some of them to realize how even after centuries they could have possibly benefitted. Eventually they do…and the film displays the difficult road toward reconciliation.

See it or get it or pick up the book by Katrina’s cousin Tom DeWolf. It’s called “Inheriting the Trade.” As Faulkner said, “The past is not dead. In fact, it’s not even past.”