A social strategy for recovering 10 million names
Helping a landmark genealogy project invite descendants to reclaim their ancestors’ stories.
10 Million Names (American Ancestors)
The challenge
The 10 Million Names Project is working to recover the names and restore the family histories of people enslaved in America before emancipation. That’s an estimated 10 million men, women, and children of African descent. It needed a social presence that honored that history with care while inviting descendants, genealogists, and educators to take part.
Our approach
We built the project’s social media strategy platform by platform. Facebook carried long-form stories and live Q&As with historians. X held short threads and themed hashtag moments, and Instagram featured visual storytelling with historical documents and Reels.
We organized the content around four pillars: ancestry stories, education, community stories shared by descendants, and project milestones. We also wrote the launch content calendar. Throughout, we kept the focus on the people whose names were being recovered and the families reconnecting with them.
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