Jefferson's Blood
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Thomas Lennon
Thomas Woodson
Byron Woodson
Robert Achs
Steve Audette
Steve Audette
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Documentary that examines the DNA evidence that proves Thomas Jefferson had a long-standing relationship and several children with Sally Hemings, a woman who was his slave. An early hero of the anti-slavery movement, Jefferson wrote about slavery's corrupting influence on blacks and whites alike. It is now known, however, that Jefferson lived a dual life: sharing his house with his white daughter and grandchildren, while his unacknowledged mistress and his children by her worked in the very same house as slaves. Correspondent Shelby Steele examines Jefferson's life and follows the descendents of Jefferson and Hemings as they undergo DNA testing, search out their family history and try to sort out their place along America's blurred color line.
