To Be Enslaved or To Die

Today in class, we discussed the readings of Sojourner Truth, Maria Stewart, and Henri Garnet, who were all activists in one form or another. Sojourner Truth's piece was centered more so on woman's rights, rather than the rights of African Americans. She wanted women, no matter what race or creed, to be treated as such and given equal rights to their male counterparts. In a sense, it was as if Truth subscribed to the idea that she was a woman first and foremost, and African-American second, which is a discord to the thought that was traveling around at this time. In that sense, Sojourner Truth was a revolutionary.

Truth presents her argument in an accommodationists' format, stating in a sense that we (women) wouldn't take more rights than they needed. She even goes as far as to say that she wanted the opportunity to fix the wrongs women caused in the Bible, and hope that white men would give them the opportunity to do so. However, there is one argument that is posed with Truth's presentation. One must wonder how to negotiate chivalry with equality?

If women want to be treated as though they are delicate creatures and to be honed as the carriers of life, how can they in turn combat for equal rights as men who make a living working their entire lives in the fields being brutalized?

Maria Stewart's argument was a little more educated. Her intended audience was the black elite and the educated whites as shown thru the language used in the piece. She sought to use religion as the key force against the hypocrisy in America that slavery was justifiable by the Bible.

Garnet was a revolutionary. He called for an uprising of the people to combat the ills of slavery. He too, spoke in a heightened voice that was intended mainly for the entertainment of black leaders, but his message was different in that it was one of the first real calls to action. He understood the numbers game, and that blacks slowly were outnumbering whites and therefore changes were going to have to be made. Garnet felt it was time to accelerate that process.

However, the main discussion in class, came upon the idea that slaves from Africa had better assimilate to white America for survival. Many people in the class saw that slaves were being "smart" by "pretending" to follow the ways of the majority and sacrifice their own culture to survive, and quite possibly make a name for themselves in the north if they were able to escape. The conversation heightened when children got involved, when people stated that it was nearly impossible to rebel with children that you had to care for.

My point centered around the concept of individuality and culture. For me, it seemed as if you were sacrificing your culture, your religion, and everything you were taken from in your homeland to be enslaved, you were no good alive. You were not you. You were who they wanted you to be. You had lost all sense of who you were to be enslaved into a life of labor. Why would you want that? I would have rebelled and most likely would have lost my life fighting for the preservation of my heritage and culture, because if you don't have that, what do you have? You have nothing. You have a life of slavery and nothing to show for it. I would enrich my kids lives by instilling in them what you are fighting for so that they too can understand the lineage and heritage from which they come. In some sense, I imagine it was the similar liberal vs. conservative clash I have been facing since coming to Alabama. It seems I am as far left as possible, and it scares me that I know people that are even more liberal than I am!

The truth is that the abolition of slavery was not impending. There was no way for the slaves to have known that by them assimilating and making grassroots opposition from time to time, that slavery would undoubtedly come to an end at one point. So, why not rebel? Why not fight?

Maybe life is worth more than losing for your belief system and your ideals. I am not sure. The opposition made the claim that blacks were not as dumb as people made them out to be, and were simply acting as if they were listening to master, but were still practicing what they believed in regardless. The opposition felt that blacks were doing what was best for their lives and prolonging the name of their family. If blacks were to rebel, they would have become an extinct species. African Americans were simply doing what was best at the time.

I cannot say what is right and wrong, but I can say what my stance is.

I hope you enjoyed reading this blog, and have some input of your own. Thank you for reading. Stay tuned.