Former slave H. J. Williams described his life afteremancipation: Chopping cotton. Plowing the mule. You know, sharecroppingIt wasnt complete slavery, but it wasnt much different at that time.

The iconic images and sounds associated with Americas Civil Rights movement are well known. But what happened before the heroes and protests; court orders and sit-ins? Weve come a long way, but how did we get here? As we observe Black History Month this February, we have an opportunity to reflect on how and why the quest for freedom was a movement made up not just of charismatic leaders, but also of everyday people who made extraordinary decisions to fight for change.

Stories From the Road to Freedom, which includes many first-person testimonies by people like Williams, is a new two-hour documentary premiering on HISTORY on Saturday, February 16,at 10 p.m. EST. Narrated byDeon Cole, the film gives a fresh perspective on the roughly 100 years between the end of the Civil War and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The special uses firsthand accounts, rare audio recordings, never-before-seen archival footage, and home movies to chronicle African-American life as lived by regular people, in their own words. These were the everyday people who carved out a life despite segregation, and then lit the spark that would become a massive mobilization for Civil Rights. This film preserves these stories and images for a new generation of young people who may just now be learning about the iconic leaders of the Civil Rights era.

Despite their efforts to maintain vibrant lives filled with dignity and freedom, African-Americans continued to be faced with discrimination and violence in American society. And they continued to press the issue of integration so that the United States would one day become the fully multi-racial society it is today.

The 13ththrough 15thAmendments paved the way for equality in official terms. But during the decades after the Civil War, many of these advances were peeled back by new segregation laws. Rather than recede into despair under the realities of Jim Crow,African-Americans developed new communities based on values of education, excellence and faith. After the 1896 Supreme Court decision Plessy v. Ferguson spelled out the separate but equal doctrine, African-Americans created their own schools, towns, gathering places, and traditions.

For example, Langston City, Oklahoma, was just one of thousands of all-black towns that werefounded after the Civil War. As one citizen, E. P. McCabe, said, We have a good society, church privileges, school privileges and last but not least, the enjoyment of every right every other man enjoys under the Constitution.

While the full promises of American freedom and equality were stalled, African-Americans forged thriving communities. Juneteeth celebrations, which marked the end of slavery inTexas, became commonplace for African-Americans, though no official Emancipation Day has made it onto the American calendar.

In many ways, life after emancipation for former slaves was too similar to life before emancipation. (Photo: NBC Universal Archives)

Despite their efforts to maintain vibrant lives filled with dignity and freedom, African-Americans continued to be faced with discrimination and violence in American society. And they continued to press the issue of integration so that the United States would one day become the fully multiracial society it is today.

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Everyday African-Americans on the Extraordinary Road to Freedom