From Africa to Florida: A Story of People, Faith & Freedom

Discover a Powerful Chapter of Florida’s History

This October, during Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Month, join filmmaker, historian, and cultural advocate Derek Hankerson for a fascinating look at Florida’s Gullah Geechee legacy and the remarkable people, places, and stories that helped shape the state’s history.

The Gullah Geechee story reaches from the Sea Islands and coastal communities of the Carolinas into Florida, carrying generations of traditions, perseverance, faith, family, agriculture, and the pursuit of freedom. Hankerson has spent more than two decades researching and preserving this history, inspired in part by his own family connections to Gullah Geechee communities in South Carolina and Florida.

“I have traveled to Germany for 20 plus years.” says Derek Hankerson.

“Today, I am bringing back a new historical lens: looking at San Agustín named for Augustine of Hippo in 1565 through the connections between Florida, Europe, empire, Native peoples, Africans, and the 250th anniversary.”