Rashid Hamzah

"I'll Have My Child Back?" Rashid Hamzah

In the nineteenth century, women were not expected to make speeches in public. Most people felt that was a job for men. Because of prejudice, most people also refused to listen to Black speakers. Being a Black woman and former slave, Sojourner Truth had a triple handicap to overcome. Her simple message, delivered in a low booming voice was sincere and moved her listeners. Though illiterate, this woman of indomitable character and intellect left her mark as an abolitionist and eloquent spokesperson for the Women's Rights Movement. Born into slavery in Ulster County in upstate New York, she, like many other slaves, had watched her brothers and sisters sold away from their families. When she saw her own baby Peter illegally sent to Alabama into slavery, this strong determined woman went to court and demanded the return of her baby. The judge in Kingston Court listened to her plea and agreed with her. Soon her baby was home in New York with his mother: "A baby s'pose to be with his Mama, and a Mama s'pose to be with her baby. That's the way God made it and no man's got the right to undo it." This was the first ever lawsuit won by a Black parent. The short story "I'll Have My Child Back" The Sojourner Truth Story celebrates the life of this inspirational and determined woman. It tells of her struggles and victory over tremendous odds. Sojourner Truth used the American system of justice and challenged the fairness of the American privileged class. The book tells of how she won freedom for her son from a state where slavery was still legal.