Meet: Harriet Ann Jacobs (1813-1897). Escaping slavery by hiding for 7 years, she wrote one of the first autobiographical narratives about the struggle for freedom by female slaves and an account of the sexual harassment and abuse they endured.
by HauteAssMess
5 Comments
Do not forget. Never forget. This woman and many others lived this life in this country because of this country. It’s not yet 200 years since she passed. That’s not ancient history.
What a fascinating woman I’ve never heard of before.
I love history so much- there’s always so much more to learn.
Growing up, my grandmother taught me about Harriet Jacobs because of the similarities in our family.
Like Harriet, my great-grandmother Celeste was considered mulatto but under the racial caste system she was fully Black. My grandmother was seen as “passing” because of her red hair and fair skin, but they still considered her a black woman. She had to sit in the back of the bus and use the back door when entering businesses.
I picked up her book while at a museum in Atlanta as a kid and it shook me to my core. I think it should be required reading for all US history classes.
History needs to be learned, the good, the bad and the horrible. Especially because some are trying to whitewash it. This book is available still if anyone is interested in reading it. It is under her name.
Thank you for sharing this important history!