Skip to main content
Back to Show
PBS News Hour

How this slave manuscript challenges an American narrative

Omar Ibn Said was 37 years old when he was taken from his West African home and transported to Charleston, South Carolina, as a slave in the 1800s. Now, his one-of-a-kind autobiographical manuscript has been translated from its original Arabic and housed at the Library of Congress, where it “annihilates” the conventional narrative of African slaves as uneducated and uncultured. Amna Nawaz reports.

Support Provided By
Season
January 28, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 28, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 23, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 23, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 27, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 27, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 22, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 22, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 26, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 26, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 21, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 21, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 20, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 20, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
January 19, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
January 19, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
August 31, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
26:45
August 31, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
April 5, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
26:45
April 5, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
January 12, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
26:44
January 12, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
January 11, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
26:45
January 11, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode
Active loading indicator