Unchained Memories

Unchained Memories
DVD cover
Directed by	Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon
Written by	Mark Jonathan Harris
Narrated by	Whoopi Goldberg
Distributed by	HBO
Release date	2003
Running time	75 Min
Country	United States
Language	English

Unchained Memories is a 2003 documentary film about the stories of former slaves interviewed during the 1930s as part of the Federal Writers' Project and preserved in the WPA Slave Narrative Collection. This HBO film interpretation directed by Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon is a compilation of slave narratives, narrated by actors, emulating the original conversation with the interviewer. The slave narratives may be the most accurate in terms of the everyday activities of the enslaved, serving as personal memoirs of more than two thousand former slaves. The documentary depicts the emotions of the slaves and what they endured. The "Master" had the opportunity to sell, trade, or kill the enslaved, for retribution should one slave not obey.

The largest collection of slave narratives emerged from the Federal Writers Project. Created by the Federal Government under the WPA to reduce unemployment during the 1930s, one component of the Federal Writers' Project involved interviews with thousands of former slaves in 17 states. The oral history interview project yielded an extraordinary set of 2,300 autobiographical documents known as the Slave Narrative Collection. What emerges from these documents are pictures of living standards, the daily chores, and long days, were brought to light along with the stories of the good and bad "Master." The brutality, torture, and abuse under slavery are themes in the interviews.

After the Civil War ended in 1865, more than four million slaves were set free. The main objectives were to inform the public, and describe the history and life of the former slaves. More than 2,000 slave narratives, along with 500 photos are available online at the Library of Congress as part of the "Born in Slavery" project.