Lyn Franklin Hoyt,
Nashville, TN.
I’m on a search, a journey for words, to figure out how my family heritage can be used for good to heal atrocities, rather than become a memory of evil. Not to hide that evil, but face it head on as recognition slavery was wrong and to talk about what really happened and how it resonates today. My family hid it. We were ashamed. Some in denial we have any responsibility for our past. I did not even know or understand that I descended from one of the worst slave trading families until I was in my 30’s. Now as a public school advocate I see clearly the generational impact that seems inescapable for some as legacy of slavery and the continuing racism and oppression that exists in this country. The Franklin family is well known in slavery history circles. Ironically my children carry the HOYT name, a family well known for their participation in the Underground Railroad in Ohio and leaders of anti-slavery abolitionist societies in Michigan. How can speaking out help heal rather than hurt? How do I honor my dead relatives while still recognizing they were very flawed? We are entering a time where people want to talk about this. For that I am grateful for this site.
