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The Documentary Podcast

Paths of return: A special homecoming to Sierra Leone

The Documentary Podcast

BBC

Society & Culture, Documentary, Personal Journals

4.32.6K Ratings

🗓️ 12 January 2025

⏱️ 52 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In Freetown, Sierra Leone, we join a group of African-Americans who have all taken a DNA test and discovered their ancestors came from this country on the West Coast of Africa, before they were trafficked to the US and enslaved. Over their two week trip, we explore the bustling city of Freetown, a very different experience to the US. They travel to remote villages where their ancestors may have lived. Here they are each adopted by a local family and given a traditional name according to the ethnic group indicated in their DNA test. There is also a boat trip to Bunce Island, where they find the ruins of a slave fort where men, women and children were held captive in appalling conditions. And we meet other returnees who have come back to Sierra Leone to make a difference.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Welcome to the documentary from the BBC World Service.

0:08.4

This is Paths of Return.

0:14.8

Nice to meet you, James.

0:17.6

Oh, yeah?

0:18.8

Ah, okay.

0:20.8

I'm born from York Village yeah? Ah, okay.

0:21.3

I'm born from York Village.

0:23.3

York Village?

0:24.3

Okay.

0:26.1

We're looking at each other, like, can you believe we did this?

0:30.5

We're the one, the outlier, that came back.

0:37.4

How long is the boat ride?

0:39.3

Only minutes to banana, yeah?

0:41.3

Okay.

0:42.3

All right.

0:43.3

All right, that's one.

0:46.3

It restores a stolen legacy.

0:50.3

So here is the first point of no return.

0:57.3

It occurred to me that I'm looking at this door that my great, great, great, great grandmother

1:00.0

was forced through around 250 years ago.

1:03.9

It was never intended, but we're back.

1:13.6

Let us go to Freetown, overseas comes to Freetown.

...

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