keep black voters from turning out. that helped set the stage for a violent confrontation as demonstrators began to gather here at the courthouse in downtown newton on the day that became known as bloody saturday. i saw some whites coming out of the hardware store with axe handles, and they approached us and started beating us with the axe handles. they beat us down to the ground. my aunt josie, she s a little petite woman, she fell on she put her body over his and was hollering at them to stop beating charles sherrod because they were going to kill him. reporter: that didn t stop charles sherrod from driving on the back roads to meet every black american family.
daylight and get food and try to be in the field as the sun was coming up. reporter: walking down the streets near her home town, sherrod remembers working in the cotton fields as a young child. you had a sack, you know, that you put on, and the sack went over this shoulder, you know, and the opening was here. so you re bending over picking cotton and putting it in the sack. and when it gets full, then you ve got to taket over to a burlap sheet and pour it on there. and you did that all day long. reporter: shirley sherrod s family has lived in this area since the 1800s, all farmers, sharecroppers over the years who over the years bought more and more of the land they worked. she grew up in a small home with her mother, her father, and her five younger sisters. sandra, one of them, recalled
a particular way that s uncomfortable because wee o re uncomfortable about race. is he qualified or in some way he cannot do it. i think he believes he cannot do it, but yet being half raised and having been raised by white people, he is in a unique spot and he can provide a perspective that would be important, i think, to a lot of people. he has done that in the past, whether it was during the reverend wright controversy, during the skip gates, you know. when he actually does take the time to reflect, the american people enjoy a grown up and mature conversation from him. i posed a similar question to shirley sherrod when i interviewed her yesterday and the day before. i want you guys to take a listen, and we ll talk about it. you know, you heard your mama
be in the field as the sun was coming up. walking down the streets near her hometown, sherrod remembers working in the cotton fields as a young child. you had a sack that you put on, and the sack went over this shoulder, you know, and the opening was here. so you re bending over picking cotton and putting it in the sack. and when it gets full, you got to take it over to a burlap sheet and pour it on there. and you did that all day long. reporter: shirley sherrod s family has lived in this area since the 1800s. all farmers, share croppers, who over the years bought more and more of the land they worked. she grew up in a small house with her father and her mother, and her five younger sisters. sandra, one of them, recalls how her father always wanted a boy. he called us boys names.
that s going to be a big day. a time after that, we re looking at seven to ten days when they will be able to finish that relief well and finally just kill this well completely. so, again, this set us back about a week. if that storm hadn t come through, we would be seeing the end of that well right now. cnn s david mattingly. david, thank you very much. coming up on cnn, our special report, who is shirley sherrod. many adults don t meet the recommended daily intake for all vitamins and minerals through diet alone. that s why there s. it helps provide key nutrients your body could be missing. one serving of boost contains twenty-six essential vitamins and minerals plus 10 grams of protein. these nutrients help promote bone health and muscle mass to help keep your body moving. achieve a balanced diet so you can live life to the fullest. find boost in the nutrition isle. brand power. helping you buy better.