A brief introduction by one of the cousins

Tom DeWolf writes:

Now that we have a blog up and running on the Traces of the Trade site (thanks, James!) I’ll add a couple of posts to introduce myself (especially for those who haven’t seen the film or read the book).

I’m one of the ten DeWolf family members who participated in the international journey to make the film. In a certain sense, I was sort of the “odd man out” in our group. I’m not directly descended from the slave traders like the other nine family participants (I’m descended from the older brother of the first slave trader in the family; a carpenter from Connecticut). I have no roots in New England like the others. The descendants of my carpenter-ancestor were all farmers in Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Iowa. I was born and raised in California and have lived on the west coast all my life. As you’ll learn in one of the pivotal scenes in the film, of all our fathers, mine is the only one without an Ivy League education.

I wrote a book about my experiences and reactions to our journey. As you might imagine, my perspective is a bit different than that of my dear cousin Katrina. We didn’t collaborate. She didn’t read my manuscript until it was in its final draft. I didn’t see the film until the rest of the family did. We decided that each document would be our individual story of our journey. We even agreed to have different titles so that each would stand on its own. Inheriting The Trade was published by Beacon Press in January 2008 and is available anywhere you buy books (though it may not be on the shelf; you may have to order it).

I maintain a blog of my own and I’ve been known to post on other blogs, like Beacon Broadside, Author! Author!, and the P.O.V. Blog, among others. One goal that all of us who have participated (and continue to participate) in Traces of the Trade share is the desire to spread the word as widely as we can in order to deepen the conversation about race and the legacy of slavery in our nation.

On a personal note, I’ve been married for 22 years. Lindi and I have four children and three grandchildren (and, rumor has it, a fourth is on the way). I’ve been on the road a lot since the book was published in January. I plan to be on the road a lot for the foreseeable future. For more information please visit my website.

No Comments »