Martin Luther King had “a dream that… the sons of former slaves and slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of Brotherhood.”
Coming to the table usually involves hearing each others’ stories. Sometimes those stories are about everyday life, triumphs and progress or the negative impacts of slavery that the US still faces. Sometimes coming together involves facing stereotypes, fears, anger and guilt that many of us hold. Over time, as we come together, we will create a more complete, shared story, a story of a multigenerational, interracial family.
Click on any of the portraits at the top of the page to what participants had to say about their own experience of coming to the table. |
The Coming to the Table project is gathering stories and experiences of people who are coming to the table. Many come to that table by looking into their heritage where they bump into someone from the “other” side- descendants of people who owned slaves and descendants of those who were enslaved (or both). Sometimes those from the “other” side are related by blood. Other times, they are descendants of people who lived in the same place for several generations. 
The Coming to the Table project believes that it is through looking at slavery and our connections to it as well as our historical roots that healing will begin. We do it in the spirit of seeking truth and ultimately reconciliation.