Sojourner Truth

1797 – 1883

Sojourner Truth, born Isabella Bomefree into slavery in New York around 1797, escaped to freedom with her infant daughter in 1826 and became one of the most powerful abolitionist and women's rights orators of the 19th century. In 1828 she became the first Black woman to win a court case against a white man, successfully recovering her son who had been illegally sold into slavery in Alabama. Her 1851 "Ain't I a Woman?" speech at a women's rights convention in Akron, Ohio, remains a defining text of intersectional American activism.

Last checked: May 10, 2026, 1:06 PM