Isabella Baumfree, but also known as Sojourner Truth, was an African-American abolitionist and women's rights activist. She was born into slavery with her family of fourteen people. Truth was one of the few people who escaped slavery and did not die in the process. Truth spoke up for slavery and for women's rights throughout her long life and this is the story of how she did it.
Truth was born in the year 1797, in Swartekill, New York. She was one of twelve children born to James and Elizabeth Baumfree, who spoke only Dutch. When Truth’s first master, Colonel Hardenbergh, passed at an old age, the whole Baumfree family was passed on to his son, Charles Baumfree. At the age of nine, Truth (but at the time …show more content…
Two years later, Truth’s owner made her marry an older slave named Thomas. Later the two had a son, Peter, and two daughters, Elizabeth and Sophia. When Truth was twenty-nine, she escaped from slavery with her infant daughter, Sophia. Her other kids stayed behind. In 1828, she won a lawsuit to recover her son who was illegally shipped to a man in Alabama. This was the first time a black woman took a white man to court and won. (“Sojourner Truth. …show more content…
Truth accomplished many things in her life like meeting Abraham Lincoln, giving the famous speech “Ain’t I a Woman?”, and to be the first black woman to speak against slavery and women's rights. Some interesting facts about Truth was that she was in a cult called the “Kingdom”. The people in the organization were a prophet named Elijah Pierson and another religious figure, Matthias. Later, Matthias was arrested for murdering Pierson, Truth was accused of being an accomplice. Truth took him to court and won the case of being innocent. Truth, then grew apart from the group and their activities, thinking about her children. ("Truth, Sojourner")
Truth’s speech famous speech, entitled “Ain’t I a Woman?” was given in Akron, Ohio in 1851 at the Women's Rights Convention. This speech impacted loads of woman to start standing up for themselves. One of the quotes in the speech that stuck with a bunch woman was “If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back and get it right-side up again.”. Truth traveled around the world going to different places and telling women that they have power also. (Who is Sojourner