(I’m writing this reflection to commemorate June 19th [sometimes called Juneteenth, Jubilee Day, or Emancipation Day], the federal holiday that commemorates the ending of slavery in the United States)

Recently I read an article in the Smithsonian magazine (March 2024) by Cynthia Greenlee entitled “The Gospel of Truth.” It attempts to tell the true story of Sojourner Truth based on the latest historical research. First, a few facts. Isabella Bauntree was born into slavery not on a southern plantation, but in the Hudson Valley of New York–which was called New Amsterdam back then. She was born in the late 1700’s to Elizabeth and James Bauntree. Her first language was not English, but Dutch. She never learned to read and write, yet she possessed an amazing gift for public speaking.

In her dictated autobiography, she tells of how she gained her freedom: one day she just walked away carrying her infant daughter, Sophia, and a few worldly goods. Befriended by Quaker abolitionists, she filed a lawsuit to reclaim her son Peter who had been illegally sold into slavery in Alabama. Amazingly, she won the lawsuit and was reunited with her boy. She describes his shocking condition: “From the crown of his head to the sole of his foot, the callosities and indurations of his entire body were frightful to behold.” A religious woman, Isabella frequently talked to God while walking in the woods. One day in 1843 while praying, she felt God calling her to travel (sojourn) around the country to preach the truth of God’s word. Thus, she took the name Sojourner Truth.

Contemporary accounts describe Truth as a “tall (6 ft.) masculine-looking figure” with “a deep gutteral, powerful voice.” An avid abolitionist, she proposed land grants for recently freed southern slaves and was a “foremother” of the movement for slavery reparations. But she was also a prominent leader in the civil rights and women’s suffrage movements. In addition, she met President Abraham Lincoln and “hobnobbed” with Harriet Beecher Stowe.

A century before Rosa Parks sat down on an Alabama bus, Truth was “chasing streetcars in Washington, D.C. where Blacks were denied the right to ride.” One day when a streetcar passed her by, Truth gave three tremendous yelps: “I want to ride! I want to ride! I want to ride!” She jumped onto the streetcar, much to the shock of the conductor. When he went to eject her, she told him she was “from the Empire State and knew the laws as well as he.” She was also keenly interested in “old age justice,” and fought for the rights of the elderly, including her own parents.

Truth displayed considerable media savvy. She sold photographs of herself at talks and conventions to help support herself and her children. On the pictures she wrote: “I sell the Shadow to support the Substance.” She controlled her own story by publishing her autobiography, Narrative of Sojourner Truth, a Northern Slave. On May 29, 1851, Truth addressed the attendees of the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio. This past May, a beautiful new memorial was dedicated in her honor in Akron on the site where she gave her mememorable speech. Visit it on line or (better yet) in person!

Cory McLiechey of Grand Rapids, MI, is the fifth generation grandson of Sojourner Truth, a direct discendant through Truth’s daughter, Sophia. He is “now fundraising for a hologram version of his ancestor.” One day he hopes to interview this hologram of Truth in front of elementary school students. It seems “a fitting way” to honor Truth, “a mover and shaker who understood the power of images, and the importance of telling her own story.”

For reflection:

Is there anything that stands out for you in Sojourner Truth’s story?

If you could summarize her in just a few words, what words would you choose?

What progress have we made in the justice issues Truth fought for? What justice issues are we still struggling with?

Our video is “We Shall Overcome,” one of the anthems for the Civil Rights Movement around the world. Here it is sung by a group called “SOS from the Kids.”

I invite you to add your thoughts to this reflection below. Thank you!