Samuel Pieh applauses 'Amistad' movie about his ancestor, slave revolt leader Joseph Cinque

Jet, Feb 23, 1998

The critically-acclaimed movie Amistad has received rave reviews by film critics and moviegoers alike. Ifs also being lauded by Samuel H. Pieh, a descendant of the Amistad slave ship revolt leader Joseph Cinque, who was originally named Sengbe Pieh.

"The movie is dramatically presented very well," Samuel Pieh told an audience at an Amistad Revisited forum sponsored by Fisk University's Race Relations Institute in Nashville, TN.

Having served as a consultant on the movie as well as having a small role as an African elder, the 49-year-old Pieh said that participating in the re-enactment of his ancestor's history was so emotional that at times he had to leave the set.

"Sierra Leone is destitute and in great turmoil today," Pieh said. "Families are broken. There is another type of slavery happening there, so I hope this movie puts more emphasis on Sierra Leone."

Amistad, directed by Steven Spielberg and co-produced by Debbie Allen and Spielberg, recounts the true story of an 1839 slave revolt aboard the Spanish ship, La Amistad. Cinque, who was one of 53 Sierra Leone natives enslaved aboard the ship, led the revolt where they killed but a few of their captors.