“Life is a hard battle anyway. If we laugh and sing a little as we fight the good fight of freedom, it makes it all go easier. I will not allow my life's light to be determined by the darkness around me.”(“Sojourner Truth”)An activist and reformer, escaped slave Sojourner Truth worked unceasingly to contribute to the advancement of the abolitionist movement and equality for all. Born into slavery, Sojourner Truth, originally named Isabella Baumfree, faced many difficulties in her life. At the age of nine, she was sold by her owner for $100; this price included a flock of sheep, showing how little she was worth. It proved that she was a victim of dehumanization, along with all other slaves. She lived as a slave for many years. When she
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Infuriated, she went to court for her son’s freedom. As an African American woman, she had a huge disadvantage against a plantation owner and a slave owner. Many challenges appeared in the movement of the case. First, when her son had been asked whether he wanted to go with his mother or not, he declined, though he was beaten up badly. This showed that he had probably been forced by his owner to say that he did not want to leave slavery. Surprisingly, she defeated the slave owner, and she was the first black woman to win a case against a white man. Through this, Truth began her journey fighting for equality for all genders and races. She went to many meetings to support the abolitionist movement. Also, she attended several women’s rights conventions. At numerous of these events, she spoke about the problems and issues of slavery and discrimination, and became an inspiration among all abolitionists and …show more content…
She had the good fortune to make acquaintances such as Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Martin Luther King Jr., all of whom were or would soon be important figures in the abolitionist movement. She gained permission from President Lincoln to create reform camps and counsel African American people who had recently left the life of slavery to become free. She also helped recruit troops for the Union Army, using her camps as a way to persuade men to volunteer and serve, convincing her grandson to enlist himself in the process. When Truth attended the Ohio Convention in 1851, she delivered her most famous speech, now known as “Ain’t I A Woman”. In the speech, she said, “that man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere”(“And Ain’t I a Woman?”). She said that no one ever did that for her, yet she was still a woman. She also stated that although she was a woman, she was capable of doing what men could and more. “I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well!”(“And Ain’t I a Woman”). She asked, “If women want any rights more than they's got, why don't they just take them, and not be talking about it?” (“Sojourner Truth”).
Overcoming many challenges in her life, Truth kept her determined spirit alive, winning a court case against a white man, traveling across the country many times to speak, and fighting for equality.
Infuriated, she went to court for her son’s freedom. As an African American woman, she had a huge disadvantage against a plantation owner and a slave owner. Many challenges appeared in the movement of the case. First, when her son had been asked whether he wanted to go with his mother or not, he declined, though he was beaten up badly. This showed that he had probably been forced by his owner to say that he did not want to leave slavery. Surprisingly, she defeated the slave owner, and she was the first black woman to win a case against a white man. Through this, Truth began her journey fighting for equality for all genders and races. She went to many meetings to support the abolitionist movement. Also, she attended several women’s rights conventions. At numerous of these events, she spoke about the problems and issues of slavery and discrimination, and became an inspiration among all abolitionists and …show more content…
She had the good fortune to make acquaintances such as Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Martin Luther King Jr., all of whom were or would soon be important figures in the abolitionist movement. She gained permission from President Lincoln to create reform camps and counsel African American people who had recently left the life of slavery to become free. She also helped recruit troops for the Union Army, using her camps as a way to persuade men to volunteer and serve, convincing her grandson to enlist himself in the process. When Truth attended the Ohio Convention in 1851, she delivered her most famous speech, now known as “Ain’t I A Woman”. In the speech, she said, “that man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere”(“And Ain’t I a Woman?”). She said that no one ever did that for her, yet she was still a woman. She also stated that although she was a woman, she was capable of doing what men could and more. “I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well!”(“And Ain’t I a Woman”). She asked, “If women want any rights more than they's got, why don't they just take them, and not be talking about it?” (“Sojourner Truth”).
Overcoming many challenges in her life, Truth kept her determined spirit alive, winning a court case against a white man, traveling across the country many times to speak, and fighting for equality.