What Role Did Harriet Tubman Play In The Underground Railroad

Africana Studies
Final Paper
12/12/13
The Role of Women in the Underground Railroad
In a time filled with torture and pain and where “whipped”, “chained” and “beaten to death” were words and phrases commonly tossed around the topic of American slaves, some individuals rose up and fought against the odds and in doing so solidified their place in history. Mostly all African Americans were subjected to slavery but it was the brave few that could only be pushed so far and decided to escape in hopes of finding a better life. Harriet Tubman is a prime example of a woman who aimed to turn her dream into a reality. Harriet possessed both outstanding courage and remarkable determination as she paved the lengthy road to freedom for hundreds of
However, what is known is that by 1840 both the individuals assisting the runaway slaves and the slave owners who were outraged by their loss of slave property were referring to all of this as “The Underground Railroad”. While for the most part runaways began their journey’s unaided and without assistance, each decade where slavery was legal there became an increase in the amount of people willing to lend aid to the runaway’s. The free individuals who helped runaway slaves during their quest for freedom were coined “conductors”, and often times these were white abolitionists who were taking on the Afrocentric perspective which examined the phenomena from the experience and perspectives of African people. The fleeing refugees were called “passengers” or “cargo”, and designated safe places to stop and rest were called “stations”. Giving these individuals different names provided slaves with agency by granting them a new identity and a starting point towards a new
Enslaved blacks were aware that freedom was possible in the northern United States because they would listen to conversations during dinner time, when they would act like they were not paying attention. In the chapter titled “Diaspora Africans and Slavery” the author Azavedo describes some of the laws that upheld slavery. One of the most effective being the U.S. Constitution which allowed for the importation of Africans to last, as well as the Constitutions failure to recognize African Americans as citizens. Azavedo goes on to say, “Literacy and slavery were incompatible, of course. Education was denied to slaves because it portended their freedom” (Azavedo, 99). Educating slaves was seen as a threat, because if they were literate than they could read the advertisements in the papers about other runaways and learn of their methods. Knowledge is power, and if educated slaves could forge their freedom papers as well as seek the teachings from the bible then they would be tempted to flee for a better life. Education is yet another method through which slaves could achieve agency. The ability for slaves to gain knowledge and use it for their betterment is an example of agency. Harriet kept tabs on her family in hopes of one day going back to rescue them. She was able to first