Sojourner Truth
Introduction
Sojourner Truth was a Black American evangelical preacher, protester, activist, and writer who was enslaved in the USA. Born Isabella Wagener, Sojourner was known for her religious norms which were later to be seen in the movements of her abolitionist right. Isabella was born into slavery and spent most of her younger years at the mercies of her abusive masters. She learned Dutch and bore five children with her fellow slave. Before the city of New York banned slavery, she hid in Isaac Wagener's house. Later Isaac gave her freedom. She joined forces with Quaker friends and they helped her get her son back. Her son was sold illegally into slavery. Sojourner was candid on abolitionist slave issues and regaining women's rights. Her tenacity is seen in her contribution to the lives of slaves and her impact is seen in modern-day society. Since 1828, Sojourner has lived in New York. While in New York she worked as a minister. During the 1830s, she took part in religious revivals that were common at that particular time. Also, she became an effective orator and many people came into these religious revivals to listen to her many speeches. In 1843, she renamed herself Sojourner Truth. As a time to time traveling evangelist, Sojourner met other abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass. One of the abolitionists, Garrison, and his movement cheered Sojourner to speak more of the social illness brought on by slavery. All this time Sojourner did not educate herself, hence she could neither read nor write. In 1850, she verbalized her autobiography. The book was later to be published by Olive Gilbert. After the publication of the book, the sales sustained the life of Sojourner and her fame rose to the national level. She was able to meet with women activists and even some prominent sobriety supporters. This made her name shine and spread to many places in the USA. Most of the time, she could become more inclusive in the things she did for the sake of coming up with the solution for the entire black American community.
The Historic Period of Sojourner Truth
Sojourner Truth's historic era was marked with numerous challenges because of the slavery and racism that existed during that period. Black women had to endure sexism, rape, and even murder. Black community members were not allowed to own land and even vote. Therefore, everything was against her (Inniss, 2020). It was an uphill task to speak out on slavery hence she had to try her best to come up with effective ways of convincing other people of the harm the slaves inflicted on the black people. She got help from other people of like-mindedness and also published her book to reflect her thoughts on the issue she was fighting for. In the American traditions, Sojourner is seen as a figure who shaped the USA for the better. Famed her an abolitionist and women's rights efforts, contributions were widely noted. To uphold her robust image and push women's agenda, Sojourner deliberately ignored one of her incapacitated right limbs (Oksman, 2018). Thus, she became a powerful representative of strong women whose voice could not be ignored by the rest of the world. Her journey began in the 19th century. Due to her civil achievements, she met Abraham Lincoln in 1864. Her harsh background motivated her to fight against slavery.
Sojourner Truth’s Role in the Black American Communities
The Van Wagners bought her freedom at $20 and also helped her reunite with her family. One of her greatest and most notable achievements was her lecture tours which she began in 1851. Lecture tours included attending women's conferences where she educated women about their rights and equal opportunities in society. She always pushed the boundaries by challenging the existing notions about women (Smiet, 2017). For instance, she opposed the notion that claimed that women were inferior and brought for the ability of women to speak out to power. One of her supporters Douglass claimed that men should suffer more than women and this difference made her split from Douglass as she believed otherwise. In the wake of the community and civic education, it was difficult convincing the men at that time that women deserved equal rights (Salie, 2020). In Washington DC., Truth petitioned against segregation and in 1860 a law enforcer tried to block her from driving into the street, she prosecuted him and won the case. Her fight to end slavery was one of the ways of ensuring that her grip on the current people could not be swayed, she ensured that most of her time is dedicated to raising awareness and collecting signatures to allow slaves to own land. Even though Congress never responded to allowing slaves to own land, it did not signify a defeat for Sojourner as she had done everything possible to ensure that all the people are held accountable for black lives in the USA.
At a time in history when women were not seen nor heard and slavery was frowned upon, Sojourner Truth embodied courage and challenged racism that was institutionalized in various places in the USA (Blaker, 2020). Racism and bigotry degraded African American women. She changed her name so that she could better champion her cause and bring to light the things slaves were suffering from. Once she came into contact with more people who were of the same mind and knowledge, she was seen as a person who would not only transform the lives of former slaves but also change their perspectives on lives. The chance of coming up with more than one way of achieving freedom won the hearts of many people and it is against this background that her achievements were marked as profound and relevant to the black Americans.
Conclusion
Her tireless efforts and call to action made her voice heard by a lot of people. The practicality of her efforts to end slavery in the USA. She was one of the first people to push forward the women and slave agenda between 1830 and 1870. For the sake of coming up with ways of freeing the black people from the oppression of their slave masters, she petitioned against segregation and even ensured blacks had a fighting chance when it came to owning property in the USA. Being born into slavery did not keep her mind captive as she had time to come up with ways. Her escape from slavery marked her mission to start preaching and guiding the black communities into freedom and religious matters. Spending 30 years of her life as a slave made her more determined to end slavery and bring closure to the black communities. Her opportunity to write down her biography was celebrated and distinguished by man people.
References
Inniss, L. B. (2020). While the Water Is Stirring: Sojourner Truth as Proto-Agonist in the Fight for (Black) Women's Rights. BUL Rev., 100, 1637.
Smiet, K. (2017). Travelling truths: Sojourner Truth, intersectionality and feminist scholarship. Radboud University, Nijmegen.
Salie, S. (2020). The representations of Sojourner Truth in The Narrative of Sojourner Truth.
Blaker, K. (2020). Sojourner Truth and Her Contemporary Media: Reports of Truth’s Identity, Intelligence, and Eloquence. Young Scholars in Writing, 17, 18-31.
Oksman, A. M. (2018). The Conflict and Concord in Self-Representation of Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth.
