Family Tree
Family Tree
Family Tree: Black experiences roots in America, especially in North Carolina, are tied up with the dispossessions of countless people over many years. Slavery in the USA means that this country’s history is deeply stained by the histories of human beings who were taken from their homes and shipped across oceans where they were put to work for free and made other people very rich. Many of these people broke a lot of rules after they got freed. They bought land. By doing this, those pioneer patriarchs and matriarchs laid down some serious generational wealth foundations for their relatives which often proved elusive for so many others.
The Family Tree, Jennifer MacArthur’s moving documentary shows what happens next. It tracks them back from here as far as we can go – or at least back to those who first came here – and then forward again through all their kids and grandkids still planting seeds today. But it doesn’t just look at one family; it looks at several different ones all working together on this same thing but each doing it differently too so that no two families look anything alike out there planting trees with each other neither sharing a single strategy beyond that.
Instead, these Black families are literally planting for tomorrow; taking up another similar cause but in ways that literally involve putting new roots down into the ground again somewhere else (or maybe even right beside) where they already had some planted before! So tree planting – along with pruning and on-property forestry management – becomes a way for families to stay connected while also keeping alive spaces that might otherwise be forgotten about forever if left alone any longer than necessary.
And naturally, managing trees like these intersects with bigger stuff too: For one thing, all those photosynthetic residents contribute directly towards sucking carbon gasses outta the air which then helps stop global warming right in its tracks; although granted this is more of an over-time kind of benefit than the kind you’re going to see happen overnight within months or even years sometimes but hey at least we’re headed in the right direction already aren’t we? That’s forestation for ya: Always was slow-moving just like them people who came over here so many generations back not thinking about today but always with something real fragile like forever on their minds instead.
The movie itself tells its story pretty straight, using everyday interviews cut with earthier field moments. There are all kinds of black farmers in different stages, some just starting out and others having figured things for themselves long ago. Experts weigh in, brush gets cleared and lumber piled up – you know the drill – but always in the background is an acknowledgment of what it took to get here. These lands were bought through sweat and tears by people who knew this might be their only chance at ever having anything worth holding onto again. And these various branches wind up providing the film with its most powerful message, showing how healing happens through action; both worlds being made better while traumas are worked through bringing families closer together as individuals’ bright-eyed hopes for tomorrow balance out any dark fears they may have about what still lies ahead today
Family Tree is a great tribute to the relatives it represents, while being an interesting story told in an accessible way. It does not break any new ground in terms of how it presents information but instead focuses on something often overlooked or underrepresented, which gives all involved voices extra weight and importance. I hope that one day there will be sequels after many years pass by – when trees grow up and other descendants either continue their work or find different paths for themselves. As shown by this movie though only time can confirm anything, those who carry on fighting for justice deserve recognition and honor.
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- Genre: Documentary
- Country: United States
- Director: Jennifer MacArthur
- Cast: Sam Cook, Mavis Gragg, Jennifer 'Nikki' Jefferies
