His ancestors are traced back to his 10g-grandmother, who arrived in the US in the early 1700's and was free, yet wrongly enslaved several times and filed lawsuits to successfully get their freedom restored in several different generations.
https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2023/06/19/african-american-museum-unknown-family-history-victor-blackwell-dnt-cnntm-vpx.cnn