After much research into the history of my family, I have settled into what person in my family I would like to research. Being that I descend from slaves and sharecroppers, finding records is very challenging, especially before the year of 1917. I knew it would be challenging, however I did not know the natures of the challenges that would be faced in researching this far back into my family history. Eddie Lee Blissett is my great grandfather. He was a sharecropper in rural Arkansas but was also a preacher from what I have heard from familial legend. My late grandmother, whom I was very close with, was his second to youngest daughter from his first marriage.  He was a sharecropper that was limited to a fourth grade education and that reflects in the record keeping of the family, as I found at least four different spellings for what was supposed to be a last name.  This intrigued me most and implored my mind to further search for what my family and who my family is. It is a powerful thing to think about the fact that here I am, at a predominantly white institution, pursuing two degrees when not even a hundred years ago my ancestors had to fight just to get a basic education and often times did not have the means to finish a meaningful amount of schooling. Amazing to think about, and very humbling. This blog will follow my journey towards takin back the identity of my family.