Let Me Know When the Slaves Arrive in the North

Nate Parker’s movie about Nat Turner’s Rebellion, The Birth of a Nation, caused quite a buzz at last month’s Sundance Film Festival. The success of recent Hollywood films such as 12 Years a Slave and Django, as well as the new television series, Mercy Street, point to a growing interest in stories about slavery, many of which are being produced and directed by African Americans.

Today I caught the extended preview for Underground, which was produced by John Legend and airs on WGN America on March 9.

It is very doubtful that I will watch it, at least not the first season. If the series is truly about the Underground Railroad than I am going to wait to see how writers handle the lives of fugitive slaves once they cross into the North.

Not surprisingly, the preview captures the drama and horror of what drove slaves to escape. Much of the dialog and brief scenes are predictable. Don’t get me wrong, I am happy to see a program like this on television, but it is going to need to do more than leave me sitting on the edge of my seat wondering whether the slaves survive their initial escape for me to tune in.

The Underground Railroad was far more than this.

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4 comments… add one
  • TFSmith Feb 22, 2016 @ 20:01

    And considering some of your readers, that’s quite a distinction!

    Takes a special kind of word salad to move past the neo-cornfeds.

    Looking forward to the next book.

    Best,

  • RUDOLPH YOUNG Feb 22, 2016 @ 16:46

    you question was answers in the Garden of Eden . It is no never mind according to Kevin. Kevin is Kevin Kevin’s personal ID drives all history of the world.When he made this pOst and when the first slaves walk of the plantation ,1865 , There was war in Afghhanistan, war in Iraq, trade issues with China, trouble on the Mexican Border. trade and immigration issues with Cuba Obama was not the first mulatto to become president by the American accounts, He was not the first President to be accused of being a Muslem. There was legislation to let people marry that could not marry before. and Alex Haley did Not know as much as Kevin, Kevin knows that God made him American, by separating his people from UR and showed him a land that he would posses, but he went by ship . Kevin saw a slave on that ship but he did not speak to him . If he had he would have known the was a Caldean , too. when the walked of the ship like walking of a plantation , the slave said , my name is Nat Turn. Turner was executed . but he did not lose his American identity at death. Other slaves like Nat came to America but they were not slaves. They advanced to the American Dream , Slavery was established in stages. make no Never mind when the slaves went North . no how they got there , they were americans. the american way is freedom of access. Kevin Is an American , there in no people in the world like HIM. You cannot prove otherwise because God said so. The Bible said in DEUT. that they bought whole heart in the American dream . This is the idea. if you read the words literally, it said they sold themselves into the House of Bondage and and they did not want to be saved.
    I GOT THIS OFF MY CHEST,Kevin

    • Kevin Levin Feb 22, 2016 @ 16:49

      Wow. This may go down as the most incoherent comment left on this blog.

      • M.D. Blough Feb 22, 2016 @ 19:18

        And although, the competition for the title has been formidable, I think we do have a winner.

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