Alloune worked in the History of Slavery Museum on the island of Goree, Senegal for more than 30 years. Not long retired, this 65-year-old widower decides to go on a trip to the USA to try and trace his ancestors who were sold as slaves to the New World more than 200 years ago. Alloune's nephew, Hassan, lives in Little Senegal, a Senegalese community that has settled in West Harlem. Alloune soon learns that, in Harlem, all black people are by no means the same, but he refuses to feel discouraged. After a lengthy search Alloune tracks down a 'cousin' named Ida Robinson who owns a newspaper stall on a street corner. Quickly learning how embittered his distant relative seems to be, Alloune decides not to tell her of his reasons for coming to America. A misunderstanding, however, leads Ida to offer him a job. In this way, Alloune launches himself into Ida's life and, as he gradually gains a better picture of her circumstances, Ida herself begins to thaw...