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Finding Us

Families Sold South by the Jesuits

Discover a pivotal piece of history that spotlights the descendants of the GU272 while honoring those who lived it. Registration required.

More than 186 years ago, hundreds of enslaved men, women, and children were sold in 1838 to sugar plantations in southern Louisiana by Maryland Jesuits for the financial benefit of Georgetown College (known today as Georgetown University) in Washington, D.C. The slaves sold by Georgetown came to be known as GU272, but current researchers have learned that the sale involved at least 314 people. These families faced incredible hardship, but most of them did not perish. They married and raised children. Today, more than 8,000 of their descendants have been located through genealogical research. The former Episcopal Church of Ascension in Donaldsonville is home to a permanent on-site exhibit, GU272 and Ascension Parish, telling this incredible story.

Join us for a screening of Finding Us, a documentary directed by Kathryn Carlson, that gives these descendants a new kind of voice in their quest to reunite their families. After the screening, Karran Royal, president of Descendants of Jesuit Enslavement, Historical & Genealogical Society, will share a presentation and lead a discussion on how these descendants are currently uncovering their ancestors’ struggle for freedom. 

Click the button to register, or call 225-473-8052.

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