Sojourner Truth ~1797-1883

Colonel Johannes Hardenbergh Sojourner Truth was born Isabella Baumfree. Her family was owned by the Hardenbergh family, and she was enslaved at the pictured house until she was 9, and Colonel Hardenbergh died.

Sold at Market Net Worth: $100 - flock When Colonel Hardenbergh died, Sojourner Truth, then known as Belle, was sold alongside a flock of sheep for a total of $100 in 1806. She was sold again in 1810 for $175, bought by John Dumont from West Park, NY. Net Worth: $100 - flock

John Dumont 1815: Forbids Truth to be with Robert after she has a child by him. 1817: Forces Truth to marry Thomas. She has five children by him. New York 1800s. Where Truth lived with Dumont. John Dumont, Truth’s owner, denies her the right to be with her fellow slave, Robert, who she loves, because after her first child, the rest of the children produced by their union would legally belong to Robert’s owner rather than Dumont. He forces her to marry another slave, Thomas, and she ends up having five children with him.

Truth Escapes 1826: John Dumont reneges on his promise. Truth escapes with her infant daughter, Sophia. 1827: Slaves are freed in New York City. Dumont promised Truth that he would free her in 1826. During the normal course of her duties, she injured her hand (crippled it), and she couldn’t keep up with all the household work and farm work. For that reason, Dumont refused to release her from slavery, and she took matters into her own hands, escaping with her infant daughter, Sophia.

The Van Wagners Taken in by Quakers When Truth escapes Dumont, she is taken in by Issac and Martha Van Wagner, a pair of Quakers. Soon after her escape, she learns that her son, Peter, who is less than 5 years old, has been sold illegally to a man in Alabama. With the Van Wagners help, Truth goes through the proper legal channels to get her son back. She wins the court case, despite being completely illiterate, and this is where her foray into politics really begins. It was one of the first cases where a black woman challenged a white man in a US court case and won. Truth won two other court cases, one involving a slander suit against her, and one involving a personal injury lawsuit when she was injured in a street car incident in Washington, D.C. Taken in by Quakers

Belle becomes Truth 1843: Isabella Baumfree successfully changes her name to Sojourner Truth. She changes her name, vowing to devote her life to Methodism and the pursuit of the abolition of slavery. T

Narrative 1850: Truth publishes her Narrative by recounting the story to Oliver Gilbert. Truth was never literate, which makes the fact she had a book published and won three court cases that much more impressive. The same year she published this book, she spoke at the first National Women’s Rights Convention in Worcester, Massachusetts. From there, she began touring with George Thompson, giving speeches to large crowds about slavery and human rights – she began her campaign as an abolitionist. She also toured with Marius Robinson, and even amongst other abolitionists, her opinions were considered radical because she wanted civil rights given to both black men and black women, not just black men. She worried that the movement would sizzle out after victories were obtained for black men, and both white/black women would be left without equal political rights – suffrage included.

1851: Ain’t I a Woman? 1851: Sojourner Truth delivers her most famous speech, Ain’t I a Woman at the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention in Akron. (Rest of quote: half measure full). Recount story of speech given in 1858. The men were so incensed that they insisted Truth was a man in woman’s clothes, so she exposed her breasts to prove that she was a woman. It also made a political statement, as it was a strong reminder of the slavery auction blocks where men and women had both been de-clothed before being sold.

Other Feats Recruited African-American troops for the Union during the Civil War Tried to desegregate street cars in Washington by riding in cars meant for whites. Argued for ownership of private property to free African-Americans from indentured servitude to wealthy landowners in order to promote a sense of self-sufficiency. This segues into her relevance to women’s history. Rosa Parks campaign to desegregate buses may have truly started with Truth’s attempts to desegregate street cars. The current-day movement for restitution/reparations for descendants of former enslaved African-Americans can also be traced back to Sojourner Truth’s efforts to sway congress to allot freed African-Americans with private property.

bell hooks Born Gloria Jean Watkins Intellectual, feminist theorist, author of over 3 dozen books Ain’t I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism We Real Cool: Black Men and Masculinity Focuses on intersectionality of race, culture, and gender. Scholar in Residence of the New School in NYC 2013-2015 Changed her name to bell hooks to honor her grandmother, as well as to emphasize the fact that the importance is the messages in her writing and not in the name those messages bear. New School in NYC is a progressive school where students challenge convention in the pursuit of their education where there are no walls between the disciplines so collaboration can occur between all disciplines.

bell hooks

Content References Bell Hooks Institute. “About bell hooks.” http://www.bellhooksinstitute.com/#/about/ Biography.com “Sojourner Truth.” http://www.biography.com/people/sojourner-truth-9511284#synopsis. Butler, Mary G. “Sojourner Truth: A Life and Legacy of Faith.” http://www.sojournertruth.org/Library/Archive/LegacyOfFaith.htm Clark, Amelia E. “Truth, Sojourner.” https://www.learningtogive.org/resources/truth-sojourner The New School. “About the New School.” http://www.newschool.edu/about/ Youtube. “The bell hooks Residences so Far | The New School.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbI6UmLh3DA

Image References Hardenberg house https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/1903_HardenberghHouseBk.jpg Sheep http://www.eradicatescrapie.org/Images/Animals/Sheep%20Flock%20(775%20x%20301).jpg New York 1800s https://img1.etsystatic.com/072/0/7724935/il_570xN.812327479_rd9e.jpg Sojourner Truth http://www.shacklesofyesterday.org/slavery-photos/sojourner-truth.jpg Quakers http://cdn.history.com/sites/2/2013/12/113633467-AB.jpeg Sojourner Truth’s Narrative Book Cover. http://www.amecpublishinghouse.com/images/Truth%20cov%20eps.png Quote 1 from Ain’t I a Woman https://i.ytimg.com/vi/MP2674y406Q/hqdefault.jpg Quote 2 from Ain’t I a Woman http://voltairine.org/Sojourner%20Truth%20sma_jpg.jpg bell hooks http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5650cda9e4b0a376ef7b4bb7/5650db17e4b085e3bb8534cf/5650db63e4b0e332af3a0091/1448216192523/?format=750w