Mae Louise Miller facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mae Louise Miller
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Miller at a speaking event
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| Born |
Mae Louise Wall
August 24, 1943 |
| Died | 2014 (aged 70–71) |
| Resting place | Richardson Funeral Home Amite, Louisiana |
| Spouse(s) | Wallace Miller |
| Children | 4 (adopted) |
| Parent(s) | Cain Walls, Sr. Lela Mae Holden Walls |
Mae Louise Miller (born Mae Louise Wall; August 24, 1943 – 2014) was an American woman. She was held in a system called peonage near Gillsburg, Mississippi and Kentwood, Louisiana. This was a type of forced labor. Her family finally gained their freedom in early 1961.
Mae's story became known when she shared it with historian Antoinette Harrell. Harrell featured Mae's experience in a short film called The Untold Story: Slavery in the 20th Century. Mae's life also inspired the 2022 film Alice.
In 2003, Mae and her six brothers and sisters joined a lawsuit. They sought payments for descendants of enslaved people from some private companies. They worked with lawyer Deadria Farmer-Paellmann. Mae told NPR that she hoped her story could help others. She said, "maybe I wasn't free, but maybe it can free somebody else." She added that many people are still trapped and don't know how to escape. In 2004, a judge ended the lawsuit.
What Was Peonage?
Peonage was a system where people were forced to work to pay off a debt. But the debt often grew, making it almost impossible to ever pay it off. People in peonage could not leave the land without permission. They were often kept in this situation through threats and harsh treatment.
Mae's Childhood in Forced Labor
Historian Antoinette Harrell thinks Mae's father, Cain Wall, lost his own farm. He signed a contract he could not read. This made him owe money to a local plantation owner. The Wall family was then forced to work for several white families. These families lived near the Louisiana-Mississippi border.
The Wall family had to do farm work and housework. They were not allowed to leave the land. They also could not read or write. They believed that all Black people were treated this way. The plantation owners treated them very harshly.
Mae's family was not paid with money. They also did not get food. Mae said, "They beat us. They didn't feed us." She remembered drinking water from a creek. The Wall family ate wild animals they caught. They also ate leftovers that were like "slop." Mae said, "They treated the dogs a whole lot better than they treated us."
Mae remembered harvesting cotton, corn, peas, butter beans, string beans, and potatoes. She said, "Whatever it was, that's what you did for no money at all."
Escaping Forced Labor
Mae said she did not run away for a long time. She thought, "What could you run to? We thought everybody was in the same predicament." Mae first tried to run away when she was 9 years old. But her brothers brought her back to the farm. Her father told her that if she ran away, "they'll kill us."
The Wall family finally gained their freedom in 1961. Mae was 18 years old. She refused to do housework for another family in Kentwood, Louisiana. She ran away after the owner threatened her. In early 1961, Mae's aunt from northern Alabama helped them escape. She "sneaked us away" on a "horse and wagon" and helped them move.
No official papers have been found to prove what Mae described. However, her situation was not unusual. White landowners used threats and worked with law enforcement. This kept people trapped in peonage. Historian Pete Daniel said that white people had the power to control Black people. He noted they were "brutal." Historian Antoinette Harrell said that in some areas, the sheriff and other officials worked together. This meant people in peonage had no one to talk to for help. Harrell spoke to many people in Louisiana who were afraid to talk about being held in forced labor.
Ron Walters, a scholar of African-American politics, found letters from the NAACP. These letters show that people were kept in forced labor in the 20th century. This happened in hidden places where law enforcement did not pay attention. Mae said they did not know peonage was illegal. She thought everyone lived that way. Mae said her family's world was "confined from one [plantation] to the other." She added, "They trade you off, they come back and get you, from one day to the next."
In 2007, a member of the Gordon family denied Mae's claims. Durwood Gordon was young when the Wall family worked on the Gordon farm. He said the family worked for his uncle Willie Gordon and cousin William Gordon. He remembered Mae's father as "a jolly type, smiling every time I saw him."
Mae called her experience "pure-D hell." She said, "I feel like my whole life has been taken." Harrell believes the family suffered lasting emotional effects from their experiences.
Life After Freedom
In 1963, Mae married Wallace Miller. She wanted to start a family. A doctor told Mae she could not have children. So, Mae adopted four children. In her 30s, Mae went back to school. She learned to read and write. In the 1970s, she became a glass-cutter.
In 2001, Mae went to a meeting about slavery reparations. She thought it was a talk about Black history. Only then did the Wall family learn that their peonage status had been illegal.
Annie Wall, Mae's sister, thought shame kept former peons from speaking out. Mae said they do not want to relive their experiences. She felt telling her story brought relief. She said, "It might bring some shame to the family, but it's not a big dark secret anymore." Harrell noted that people are afraid to share their stories. This is because many of the same white families who owned these plantations still run local government and businesses. Harrell argued that it is "not worth the risk" for most former peons. So, "most situations of this sort go unreported."
