New documentary will guide you along the Richmond Slave Trail
VENN
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Journey For Change, a local nonprofit, is highlighting the history of the Richmond Slave Trail by releasing a documentary focused on taking people along the trail and reflecting on what it means to them. The organization hopes to bring healing and reconciliation to the River City.
There are places in Shockoe Bottom that exist today that were standing back in the 1700s. By walking the Richmond Slave Trail, you can follow the same path that enslaved people have walked.
"It's really just a representation of the journey that someone would take," said Journey for Change board member Jennifer Bosquet. "When they arrived in Richmond and then walked on the shore and to the slave markets."
The crew behind this documentary wanted to put its audience in a place that they’ve never been before -- and hopefully teach them something along the way.
Journey For Change collaborated with feature film director Ruben Rios to make this vision come to life. Rios told 8News that this experience was something he felt needed to be shared with as many people as possible.
"[I asked myself,] 'How do I put somebody else in that position, who has never been anywhere near that position?'" Rios said.
The crew interviewed historians, members of churches in Richmond and people who have walked the trail on their own.
Rios said that the trail has a profound impact on anyone who walks it.
“Having someone talk about an energy that they feel when they're walking the trail -- doesn't matter who they are, what race they are ... they have some sort of connection to the land," he said.
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This trail is a large part of history in Richmond -- a part that will never fade away.
"Some of these things are coming back to haunt us a little bit -- and they are still there," Rios said. "Unfortunately, it's always there."
Many people have guided the community through the trail's history, including the late Deacon Charles Williams and late Reverend Sylvester “Tee” Turner.
Williams was the inspiration behind the film and Turner built up knowledge of the trail. They both contributed heavily to this history being heard.
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Journey for Change's director of communications, D’mon Reynolds, said the nonprofit hopes this film will take people through a journey of origin, acknowledgement and change. He added that it aims to make people think about the lasting scar this history has and how that can influence their future.
"There's an African proverb that says, 'Until the lion tells the story, the hunter will always be the hero,'" Reynolds said. "This was an opportunity for us to allow the lion, essentially, to tell the story."
The documentary remains in production as of the time of reporting, but progress is being made every day.
