7. Descendents
For the people who live as the descendants of Sally Hemings, their feelings are about as mixed as their heritage. One descendant, Gayle Jessup White, works for the property as Monticello’s Community Engagement Officer. She would be Heming’s great, great, great, great niece. In light of the facts of her heritage, White struggles to reconcile her feelings with the facts. One can’t successfully harbor negativity towards part of one’s self, not for long. Like it or not, she is the descendant of slave owners and slaves.