The Life Of Harriet Tubman And Sally Hemings

Slavery was common in the eighteenth century. Slaves were seen as property, as they were taken from their native land and forced into long hours of labor. The experience was traumatic for both black men and black women. They were physically and mentally abused by slave owners, dehumanized by the system, and ultimately denied their fundamental rights to a favorable American life. Although African men and women were both subjected to the same enslavement, men and women had different experiences in slavery based on their gender. A male perspective can be seen in, My Bondage and My Freedom by Frederick Douglass. A female perspective is shared in Harriet Jacobs’ narrative titled, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Upon reading both of the viewpoints provided, along with outside research, one can infer that women had it worse.

During the 19th century, over 100,000 slaves from southern plantations within the United States achieved their freedom through the Underground Railroad. This system of hiding and aiding a slave in order to achieve their freedom was attributed greatly to the sacrifices of many Americans. Most of the locations of the Underground Railroad are continuously a secret to this day. Many white Americans and already free slaves risked their lives to help other slaves escape the harsh conditions of their plantations in the south. Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass were two major influences to the success of the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad benefitted the African Americans by giving them hope, and most importantly freedom. If not for the Underground Railroad, the abolition of slavery would not have become a reality and slavery would have flourished and continue to spread into the newly added territories of the United States.

Women’s issues during slavery and even into the Reconstruction Era were not held as top priorities within the social structure of life during those times. The main political and social issues were within the male spectrum, and therefore left women’s rights and values in second place, behind men. Within the nineteenth century, there were four specific characteristics that society deemed should be associated with a woman; piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness. However, this was not the case when it came to black women. They were not able to exemplify the expected worldview of womanhood due to their circumstances.

The ingenious works of Harriet Tubman, William Still, and Thomas Garrett pushed the abolitionist movement towards success. Due to the torturous conditions of slavery, these three individuals relentlessly worked towards their goal of having the Underground Railroad prosper. Harriet Tubman was one of the main and most well known conductors of the Underground Railroad, she led numerous trips to help deliver slaves to freedom over the course of her adult life. William Still assisted our modern historians in that, when he was still alive, he kept very detailed records of all the slaves that were freed on the Underground Railroad’s account. Thomas Garrett dedicated his life towards eradicating slavery, he did this by working towards amending slave laws and helping them escape their plantations. As a result of their incredible effort, these three individuals successfully helped free hundreds of slaves.

The first African slaves began to arrive in North America around 1619 in the present day state of Virginia. Their main purpose was to aid in the production of profitable crops such as cotton and tobacco as well as cooking, washing clothes, and harvesting other crops. From the day the slaves were brought from Africa to North America they were treated in the most inhumane way possible. They were packed liked sardines into a boat for a journey across the Atlantic Ocean and when they arrived in North America slave masters made them work ridiculous hours and even beat them as a punishment. Gender status played an important role in the treatment of slaves and the type of work they were forced to do which can be seen in the books: Celia a Slave, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, and The American Promise Volume 1. Male and female slaves were alike yet different at the same time; they were purchased for different reasons, completed different types of work, suffered different punishments, and were considered to be the inferior race.

As you mentioned, Black women had to fought against many obstructions. In “Combahee River Collective Statement”, they said that they had been even attacked by their peers, particularly Black males. Even in their community, a smart woman was considered “ugly”, therefore, they had little opportunities to develop their intellects which force them to stay at the bottom of the power pyramid. In order to achieve their power and move upward in the hierarchy pyramid, the Black women worked harder than anybody fighting against racism and gender inequality at the same time. With these efforts, they could step out of their small boxes and could get more control over their own lives.

White women were oppressed and mentally enslaved during american slavery but black women were in a more hostile position mentally and physically. White women could not vote, enter into legal contracts, work, own property, get an education or have rights to their own bodies.What white women faced was oppression but they were still protected and had not faced the terrible struggles black women faced. Black women not only experienced sexism during american slavery but experienced racism as well, they were raped by their slave owners , were separated from family, were wet nurses and were forced labor with no pay.

Throughout history Harriet Tubman has become to be known as the women on the front of the twenty dollar bill. She has been treated like she was a dog people were hitting her with a riding crop for not doing what they were supposed to do they were slaves for the people who brought them into the country. She is influential because she took care of people who were wounded and sick, she helped the slaves get to freedom and she also part of the underground railroad.

Harriet Tubman freed from slavery in 1849 to become a number one reformist. She led many in bondage individuals to freedom on the route of the Underground Railroad, then fleeing to city. Tubman determined to flee following a bout of unhealthiness and also the death of her owner in 1849. She feared that her family would be additional cut, and feared for own her fate as a sickly slave of low amount, she at first left Maryland with two of her brothers, mount and Henry, on September 17, 1849. She created use of the network called the Underground Railroad to travel nearly ninety miles to city. Conjointly crossed into the free state of Pennsylvania with a sense of relief and awe. A pacesetter of a whole lot to freedom within the North because the

“ Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women. Superadded to the burden common to all, they have wrongs, and sufferings, and mortifications peculiarly their own.” ( Harriet Brent “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” page 119). Gender played a key role in slavery and after reading “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” it is obvious that women in slavery received far worse treatment then that of men. Not to take away the incredible injustices that were dealt upon men during slavery America, but more to emphasize the even greater hardships that African-American women faced during this time period. This paper will consist of a comparison between gender roles, religion (faith), and overall treatment of men versus women during slavery.

The social and cultural distinctions, together with the roles associated with the female gender indeed played a significant function in our understanding of how the slave trade and society proceeded. In addition to the clear oppression and subordination of slave women that originated from their race, these women also shared trails of oppression of the female gender conjointly. Given that, the very distinctions and roles imposed on the woman of slave communities generated great development through means of sexuality, fertility, and economic productivity. A clear dichotomy is present between gender roles of slaves and appointed treatments by their particular owners.

Slave men and women usually preformed the same tasks; however, slavery was very different for women than men. For example, women were encouraged to become pregnant with gifts of new clothing and less work and more food even though they were forced to return to work almost immediately after giving birth. Enslaved women also had the constant threat sexual abuse. Whether it be at the hands of the master or a fellow slave.

In her slave narrative, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs makes the case that “[slavery] is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women.” (Jacobs #) According to female slave narratives like Incidents and The History of Mary Prince: A West Indian Slave, it is worse to be a female slave because, in addition to the brutalities endured by all slaves, enslaved women are also victims of a sexist and patriarchal society where they are victims of sexual abuse and exploitation, as well as bear the added anguish of becoming mothers and knowingly raising children into this horrific system of bondage.

During the 19th century African American men, women and children were captured, held in confinement, brutalized and deprived of their basic human rights to be free. The institution of slavery had a major effect on female slaves. Being a male or female slave came with its own cruelties. For example, female slaves were sexually exploited

Slavery Differed for Men and Women Althought, slavery was a terrible event but there were no gender safe by means of its madness. The living conditions primarily relied on the slaveholder’s willingness to provide, but most slaves were found to be overworked, underfed, and living in fear. The fear experienced by the slaves was a direct result of the consequences that were applied if a slave failed at completing the slaveholder’s requested tasks.