The State of New York abolished slavery as of July 4, 1827. Her captor promised to free her the year before, but changed his mind, claiming that she had not been productive enough to earn her freedom. She continued working to satisfy her obligation, and late in 1826, she escaped with her infant daughter, Sophia, sadly leaving her other children behind because they were not legally freed in the emancipation order which maintained they were bound servants until they reached their twenties.
A family in New Paltz, New York took her and her baby in, and offered to buy her services from her captor for the remaining year of her enslavement. He paid $20 and she and Sophia lived with that family until the New York State Emancipation Act was approved a year later.
Truth learned that her 5-year-old son Peter had been sold illegally to an owner in Alabama. With the help of the her new friends, she took the issue to court and in 1828 and won, making her the first black woman ever to file suit against a white man and win. Peter was returned to her and she learned the awful truth that he had been badly abused by his captors.
She gave birth to 13 children, most of whom were born into slavery and taken from her.
During this time, Truth had a religious awakening and she moved to New York City with Peter and worked as a housekeeper. Her spiritual awakening led her to a life of charity and activism.
Peter took a job on a whaling ship, but when the ship returned to port years later, Peter was not on board. He was never heard from again, and the story of his loss is unknown.
In 1843, Belle Baumfree changed her name to Sojourner Truth and began traveling the country speaking about abolition and women's rights. At the 1851 Ohio Women's Rights Convention she delivered her "Ain't I a Woman?" speech.
She settled in Massachusetts in the 1840s and continued her activism there until 1857, when she moved to Battle Creek, Michigan, and rejoined a religious community that was working on the abolition of slavery.
During the Civil War, she worked diligently to recruit black soldiers for the US Army.
Bravery is a word that barely describes Sojourner Truth. She stood up to be heard and counted in a country that saw her as less-than-human, and her eloquence forced the ear of all to hear her. She never backed-down and she lived fearlessly.
Sojourner Truth is a hero.
Watch "Ain's I A Woman?" performed by Pat Theriault:
Photo Credit:
Randall Studio
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