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On the flip side is the feeling you could be sold at that auction block. right? >> yun imagican you imagine, fr there, youre looking up here, seeing a nice brick house. thats the house of horrors. like the haunted house. >> when youre an enslaved person, the only thing on the horizon is servitude or death or running away. when the union army arrived here and for the white folks, it said to children, thats fine, and it was terror. thousands of black folks fled across this river to join the union ...

Were about to see an auction block where people were sold. its crazy. look at the old advertisements. >> yeah. >> seven strong negroes for sale. the idea were not just talking about -- we consider this manual labor. were talking about artisan professionals. >> yeah. >> when my uncle was young, he took a picture on the slave block from a caucasian who wanted him to take the picture. for him, it was about getting the money because he paid him. and when my grandfather realized that he had stood on ...

It just weighs on you. >> there are so many more because i know from my familys story what happened and hes not here. >> yeah, of course. theres so much more. >> some say these monuments are about heritage and heroes. but if anything, theyre also reminders of americas unsettled war with itself. i started this journey starting with light and understanding. to understand what these monuments mean to those who honor them. but it was never about the monuments, the large, looming stone facades or gro...

Groups loyal to the confederacy began promoting a revisionist spin on the civil war. the so-called lost cause. it was about pinning the north as an occupying force and the south as noble defenders of virtue, all while minimizing the role of slavery. their influence would fuel generations of southern segregationists and nostalgia for the old south. the united daughters of the confederacy were especially prolific. starting in the 1890s they put up at least 700 memorials to the confederacy. symbols...

Pushed for a vote to remove the block. the six white members said they voted to keep it in its place to educate future generations. >> ive heard you say that fredericksburg may be the most historic city in america. >> indeed. our history is our nations history. if i walk down to city hall, i walk by the home aftof mary washington, by james monroes office. i walk by the home my mother was born in. >> you also walk by an auction block, right? >> i do. i do. >> what does that mean in terms of the h...

>> when you think about the conversation and debate especially over the last year, who role do the monuments and artifacts that cant be torn down as easily as a statue, how do they factor into this debate? >> thats where were really moving into. in the past few years is talking about the construction of confederate memory in kentucky. rooted specifically in this site. who are the groups who are raising money to create these monuments that populate our landscape today, start to promote it, sell i...

If you have any of that hate in your heart, its easy for you to be triggered. >> some had concerns, even before el paso. >> i dont know whats in the presidents head or heart. but what does worry me is the fact that the white supremacists are trumpeting president trump. the racists feel like they have someone whos in their corner. i think its deeply disturbing when white supremacists feel like theyre taking cues from our commander in chief. >> we bless you, father. >> for the grady family, its cl...

>> its hard to imagine that such a big moment happened in this little space. >> yes. >> but thats common in america, right? >> absolutely. >> these big moments happen in small spaces. this is what, you know, we learned that all of these small spaces can set the stage for huge explosions. >> the battle in charlottesville seemed to be over a single statue. thats a battle thats been repeated in cities across the country. but more than 1,500 monuments to the confederacy remain, honoring those who fo...

This is the way he described this man. my understanding of the testament of our perpetual devotion and respect. up one of the souths finest heroes. ♪ ♪ >> many look here like they were judged by their -- had their skill, their price, their complexion. >> the united daughters of the confederacy. they were a very active group. the night -- look at this. the nightliest of the nightly race. who sick of tng of the day of o. not -- a song of southern

Thats just america. >> the black barbershop has always been a place of community where wisdom is passed and stories are traded. todays no different. >> so what was it like growing up with that auction block right there in the corner? >> it was, like, an embarrassment. i dont need to see that block to know what the past was. >> it made you mad because i could say it could be my great-grandma, my great-grandpa. you bring them in on a boat and then you sell them. >> it is totally unfair and unreal ...