Charlotte Forten's Mission

Charlotte Forten, was a young black woman and teacher in Philadelphia who became an integral part of President Lincoln's "great experiment." During the Civil War, Southern troops were forced off the Sea Islands off the coast of Georgia, which left 8,000 slaves suddenly free. Miss Forten's mission was to journey south to Sea Island and lead those slaves in the transition from slavery to freedom. She sought to give newly freed black children a decent education and chance for a better life.  Her health deteriorated and she sufffered greatly from a lung illness but never faltered in her determination to complete her mission. Melba Moore stars as Charlotte Forten and the cast includes Ned Beatty, Anna Maria Hosford, Bruce McGill and Glynn Turman.