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A compilation, selected from various sources and arranged chronologically, of the reminiscences of slaves and ex-slaves about their experiences from the leaving of Africa through the Civil War and into the early twentieth century.
If you are looking for primary sources on slavery, look no further. Author Julius Lester provides context for what is basically a compilation of quotations by and about slaves. Some of these are incredibly harsh, with explicit language intact. In the introduction, Lester makes an argument that younger children can handle this harsh reality and that it does in fact make them into more compassionate people who will value truth over lies. This may be too much for children under the age of 12, but it's an indispensable resource for exposing young adults to the realities of this country's past.
By chance, I read this right before the movie "Twelve Years a Slave" is due out and so I noticed that book heavily quotes Solomon Northup, on whose autobiography the movie is based. ( )
This is a book about how it felt to be a slave. It is told in the words of men and women who lived through slavery. Their stories are stories of long ago. But the power of their emotions will go on forever.
The ancedtry of any black American can be traced to a bill of sale and no further. In many instances even that cannot be done. Such is true of part of my family. This book is dedicated to the memory of my great-grandparents: Elvira Smith, Maggie Carson, Slaves in Arkansas, and Square and Angeline Lester, Austin and Sylvia Jones, Slaves in Mississippi, and to those whose names are now unknown. I never knew them, but I am proud to be one of their descendants. I hope that I may be worthy of them, their strength, and their courage.
First words
It was the late forties.
Quotations
Last words
No matter where you are from I don't want you to write my story, 'cause the white folks have been and are now and always will be against the Negro.
A compilation, selected from various sources and arranged chronologically, of the reminiscences of slaves and ex-slaves about their experiences from the leaving of Africa through the Civil War and into the early twentieth century.
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Book description
They who were held as slaves looked upon themselves and the servitude in which they found themselves with the eyes and minds of human beings, conscious of everything that happened to them, conscious of all that went on around them. Yet slaves are often pictured as little more than dumb, brute animals, whose sole attributes were found in working, singing, and dancing. They were like children and slavery was actually a benefit to them--this was the view of those who were not slaves. Those who were slaves tell a different story.
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By chance, I read this right before the movie "Twelve Years a Slave" is due out and so I noticed that book heavily quotes Solomon Northup, on whose autobiography the movie is based. (