Who was Richard Allen? He was America’s first black bishop. He was born to parents who were slaves. Soon after the family was sold to a Delaware farmer. Richard faced racism, cruelty and inequality. He wasn’t educated and anything he wanted to undertake he needed his master’s permission. His master, in order to pay his …
Survived to be Sold
Viewbug Image It was suffocating, dark and crammed with shackled slaves. There were no toilets in the catacombs where they were kept before being taken to the auction block to be inspected and sold. She was one of the lucky ones who had survived the long and harrowing journey across the sea to Zanzibar. The …
Ketanji Brown Jackson
Photo by Los Angeles Times "I am standing here today by the grace of God as testament to the love and support that I've received from my family." Ketanji Brown Jackson recently made history when President Biden nominated her for Supreme Court of the United States to fill the vacancy left by the death of Antonin …
From Slave to Chef
Born a slave in Murray County, Tennessee in 1857, I was a hard-working boy during the Civil War. At 16, I worked at a Nashville restaurant. Years later, I became a chef and published my recipes. 36 Words Rufus Estes was a former slave who worked as a chef aboard luxury railway cars operated …
Pike’s Purchase
Passenger Angus Pike stood on the deck of the Unicorn, his blue eyes scanning the horizon. All around him the sea stretched out endlessly. It lapped against the capricious vessel as it headed to Liverpool. Below, in his cabin, cowering, was the young slave woman who was to be his wife’s maid and his lover. …
Reckless
Amy Hester "Hetty" Reckless had the temerity to say that she had been emancipated by her previous owner when she and her daughter fled to Philadelphia in 1826. As she boarded the stagecoach like everybody else, she resolved not to return because Colonel Johnson’s second wife had knocked out her front teeth with a broomstick …
The Remarkable Jane Bolin
I’m Jane Bolin and I’m proud to say that I’ve made history. In 1931, I became the first Black woman to graduate from Yale Law School. And on July 22, 1939, I was sworn in as a judge in New York City and served for the next 40 years. Getting there wasn’t easy. My father …
With One Stroke
My name is Lyda Newman and I was born in Ohio. I’m an African-American woman, inventor, women's rights activist and a hairdresser. One day, I thought to myself, why don’t you invent a hairbrush? The current ones were made of boar’s hair. I wanted the process of brushing hair to be more hygienic and efficient. …
Other Holocaust Victims
Perhaps, it’s something many of us are unaware of but it’s written in ink that Afro-Germans were also victims of the Holocaust." 22 Words In Mein Kampf, Hitler blamed the Jews for bringing the Negroes to the Rhineland for the specific purpose of ruining the white race. Source: Holocaust Center
Celia
Celia confessed that she was possessed when she struck her Master. 11 Words This is a true story. Scene from the play, Celia, A Slave This was written for the Weekend Writing Prompt by Sammi Cox. For instructions, click Here.
Notes to Women 