A womans search for love leads to a string of bad relationships and drug addiction. But it is also of great interest in general. I'm very comfortable with who I am and take complete ownership of my place in society and as a descendant of enslaved people. Feeling my ancestors, hearing my ancestors, say to me: Gayle, write this story. If we are going to heal as a country then we have to be honest about our complicated history, and it is very complicated and it's very painful. Open VISIONS Forum: Gayle Jessup White and Andrew M. Davenport MA'17 A Report from Monticello: Restoring African American Narratives to Thomas Jeffersons Plantation", Date: Wednesday, February 12, 2020 She is the author of the book, Reclamation: Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson, and a Descendants Search for Her Familys Lasting Legacy. Hardcover It was four generations of the Jefferson and Hemings families. We are continuously working to improve the accessibility of our web experience for everyone, and we welcome feedback and accommodation requests. Gayle Jessup White is a third generation Washingtonian whose lineage extends as far back as the indigenous people who inhabited the Chesapeake area before the arrival of Europeans. Gayle Jessup White of Henrico County, a descendant of the Jefferson and Hemings families, and the PR and community engagement officer at Monticello, stands on Mulberry Row, the home's main. For Gayle Jessup White, landing the job of Public Relations and Community Engagement Officer at Thomas Jefferson's historic home, Monticello, was more than . That history is deeply personal to Gayle Jessup White. Gayle taught journalism at VCU and created training programs for at-risk young adults. And that's how Janice (ph) learned of this story. A Black descendent of Thomas Jefferson and employee at Monticello, author Gayle Jessup White examined the legacies of her ancestors and the current racial debates. ALBEMARLE Gayle Jessup White spent four decades of her life exploring her connection to Thomas Jefferson, a passion born out of her family's oral history that they were his direct. Did any presidents live elsewhere during their administrations? For listings in Canada, the trademarks REALTOR, REALTORS, and the REALTOR logo are controlled by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify real estate professionals who are members of CREA. Gayle Jessup White talks with Karen about her book, "Reclamation: Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson, and a Descendant's Search for Her Family's Lasting Legacy.. I needed to know that to feel whole. Whites story is singular, yet somehow pervasive the most honest of American narratives. Why do you think that was, that there's something about it that stuck with you? Join Her journalist husband, Jack White, was teaching at Hampton University, so they landed in Richmond to ease the commute. I don't apologize for my - the behavior of my ancestors. 90.7 Charlotte 93.7 Southern Pines JESSUP WHITE: Well, it really is representative of who we are as Americans and how we've at times mistreated each other. Gayle Jessup White Author of "Reclamation: Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson, and a Descendant's Search for Her Family's Lasting Legacy," to be released by HarperCollins November 2021 Doing so, will help contribute to a better Americaand, yes, a better world for all who live in it." Copyright 2023 HarperCollins Publishers. Audrey Edwards, author of American Runaway: Black and Free in Paris in the Trump Years, "Thanks to Gayle Jessup White who sometimes feels 'battle scarred after another day spent fighting for equal recognitionof Black Historythat for many is an afterthought.' Kirkus Reviews, "19 Books We Can't Wait to Curl Up with This Fall!" Time: 8 p.m. So that I'm able to work at Monticello, that I'm able to accentuate because I'm a physical presence of who those people who were in prison there were, then it is the greatest privilege and honor of my life to be able to do so. Well, this would have been taboo back in the 1960s and early '70s. NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Gayle Jessup White about her book, Reclamation: Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson, and a Descendant's Search for Her Family's Lasting Legacy. Former NFL star Chad Johnson says he saved money by living inside Cincinnati Bengals stadium for 2 years. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Gayle Jessup White is the first public relations and community engagement officer at the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, the nonprofit that owns and operates Monticello. That's my job. The Making of Presidents' and First Ladies' Portraits. Zillow (Canada), Inc. holds real estate brokerage licenses in multiple provinces. 442-H New York Standard Operating Procedures New York Fair Housing NoticeTREC: Information about brokerage services, Consumer protection noticeCalifornia DRE #1522444Contact Zillow, Inc. Bookperk and other HarperCollins services. It is my heartfelt wish that when people finish this story, they understand better the contribution of our ancestors, our enslaved ancestors and those that followed them their endurance, their strength, their character and their resilience. any time. A former award-winning television reporter and anchor, Gayle started her career at the New York Times. Follow to get new release updates, special offers (including promotional offers) and improved recommendations. In Reclamation she chronicles her remarkable journey to definitively understand her heritage and reclaim it, and offers a compelling portrait of what it means to be a black woman in America, to pursue the American dream, to reconcile the legacy of racism, and to ensure the nation lives up to the ideals advocated by her legendary ancestor. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. For generations, historians and the American public alike ignored the stories of descendants of the Founding Fathers enslaved families. Get more than a Sunday sermon. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}, Independent Contractor (Newspaper Carrier), Youngkin's Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow resigns, Nebraska cheerleader competes by herself at state competition, but crowd doesn't let her feel alone, Spotsylvania Sheriff's Office ends affiliation with Reelz TV show 'On Patrol: Live', Former Virginia basketball coach Terry Holland dies after battling Alzheimer's. Owning people is sinful. Digital Audiobook Unabridged For four decades, she researched familial connections to Jefferson, ultimately learning that she was not only a descendant of Jefferson on his fathers side but also the great-great-great-granddaughter of Peter Hemings, Sally Hemings brother. After she was named a Jefferson Studies Fellow, Jessup White discovered her family lore was correct. They were tough. The findings: Jeffersons great-great-grandson, Moncure Robinson Taylor, was Whites great-grandfather through a relationship with his familys domestic servant, Whites great-grandmother Rachel Robinson. And then, of course, these stories were reported back when Jefferson was president back in 1801. Top Stories, 1073 North Benson Road "I couldn't put together in my 13-year-old mind how a little Black kid growing up in Washington, D.C. could be related to the third . Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY That's sacred ground for me, says Gayle. They were possessions. Gayle explains, I'm actually descended from her brother, Peter Hemings, who was a cook at Monticello. Gayle Jessup White began her career at The New York Times and was an award-winning TV reporter before becoming Monticello's first community engagement officer in 2016. Two people were injured in a crash involving one of the most iconic vehicles in television history, Missouri officials say. A former award-winning television reporter and anchor, Jessup White started her career at the New York Times. Two years later, she joined the staff as Community Engagement Officer, becoming a principal spokesperson and the first descendant of Jefferson and the families he enslaved to work for the Foundation. Gayle Jessup White, descendant of Thomas Jefferson, searches for her family's legacy By Erin Keever Published November 10, 2021 at 9:00 AM EST Listen 49:25 Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2021 America. White's memoir not only proves her ancestral connection to Thomas Jefferson but is a more graphic and sweeping look at how the politics of race and class play out at the highest and the lowest levels of American life." They were strong. Oral history matters because for many Black people that's all we have, Gayle explains. A former award-winning television reporter and anchor, Jessup White started her career at the New York Times. And I went to my dad first, Daddy, how could we be descended from Thomas Jefferson? For decades, she'd been a domestic for a wealthy white family, the McKnews, in Washington, D.C., until she suffered a crippling stroke. See her moment of surrender, and the miracle of life. About the Author Gayle Jessup White is a third generation Washingtonian whose lineage extends as far back as the indigenous people who inhabited the Chesapeake area before the . Send a prayer request now, or call 18007007000. Then in 2010, while with her son on one of many visits to Monticello, Gayle says, We go on the tour and the guide says, Well, Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson had children together. And I raised my hand as I always did, We're descended from Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson. And the guide says, Well, you're dignitaries, you're family. White, a Henrico County resident, and the public relations and community engagement officer at Monticello, describes her four-decade effort to reclaim her family heritage in her recently released book, Reclamation., Or as she wrote: It was always my goal to uncover my roots, to understand my familys place in American history, and to restore them to the nations narrative. Living the Christian life is a journey. Whites narrative is a metaphor for our nations contradictions and secrets some of her family members chose to pass as white. Back in 1998, there was a study called The Foster study which proved that the nephews of Jefferson whom the family had claimed had fathered children with Sally Hemings could not have been the father of her children. Due to a planned power outage on Friday, 1/14, between 8am-1pm PST, some services may be impacted. I didn't know her. Its a story of people who in ways big and small resisted their circumstances, laid a foundation for their families, and contributed to their nation, she said. The other thing that's really become interesting to me is that it wasn't just Jefferson and Sally Hemings that had relations. Executive Mansion as well as the stories of the people who lived and worked We have the documentary evidence because every time Jefferson returned home from being in Washington during his administration as president, Sally Hemings would have a baby nine months later. helps rewrite the estate's well-known narrative to include the hundreds of enslaved people who worked for Jefferson. Her new book, Reclamation: Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson, And A Descendant's Search For Her Family's Lasting Legacy," is out now. The backdrop for the early part of Whites story is Black, middle-class Washington. *This is a promotional service of HarperCollins The Spotsylvania County Sheriffs Office has decided to end its participation on a national television show, at least for now. REQUESTS, https://d2wawpwx3aybf6.cloudfront.net/hc-audio/9780063028685.mp3, privacy She's a native Charlottean. Gayle Jes. Gayle Jessup White will be in Charlotte to speak at the Mecklenburg Chapter Sons of the American Revolution on Nov. 11. They were treated as possessions. Man died Wednesday. on his fathers side but also the great-great-great-granddaughter of Peter A Washington, DC native, Gayle and her family moved to Richmond in 2006. She is not only a direct Jefferson descendant, but is related to two well-documented families enslaved at Monticello - the Hemingses and the Hubbards. Danielle Thompson - 700 Club Producer. This was happening all over in plantations in the South. Fairfield, Connecticut 06824 GAYLE JESSUP WHITE: I heard it from my oldest sister, who's about 20 years older than I am. If you have any questions, please review our privacy In her book, The Other Side of Yet, Michelle Hord details the excruciating loss of her beloved seven-year-old daughter, Gabrielle, at the hands of Doctors advise a young mother to abort after they determine her pregnancy is not viable. It behooves us all to know that history. 1 ranking in country. Her international lineage is principally Nigerian and British. But more important, as I began to understand the history, being descended from the people he enslaved and knowing who they were became a more important part of my identity.. Brokerage. Zillow, Inc. holds real estate brokerage licenses in multiple states. 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