Do You Remember Them?

Tweet

February is Black History Month in the United States. This is the month when we celebrate the sacrifices and achievements of Americans of African descent. Recently, I read two very well written articles about two African-Americans of the 19th Century whose names will be familiar to most Americans, and any one else, who has made a close study of American history. The first article was about Frederick Douglass. Mr. Douglass was born a slave in Talbot County, Maryland in 1818, was taught to read by his owner's wife until his owner put a stop to it, but surreptitiously kept reading until he became what every southern slaveholder feared, an educated black man. Douglass escaped to New York and spent the rest of his life working to end slavery, seeking self-rule for Ireland (bet you didn't know that), speaking and writing on the importance of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution (I'll guarantee they didn't teach you that in school), and establishing himself as one of the leading orators of the 19th Century. The second article lauded the work of Harriet Tubman. Interestingly, Mrs. Tubman was born a slave in Maryland in 1822 not far from where Frederick Douglass was born. Harriet Tubman is most famous for her work on the Underground Railroad via which it is known she led at least 70 escaped slaves to freedom. It is generally acknowledged that she probably led many more. What is less known about Mrs. Tubman is that she also worked first as a cook for the Union Army and then as a scout and led a gun boat raid on the Combahee River in South Carolina. Mrs. Tubman epitomized courage, and tenacity and is an example to all Americans and freedom seeking people world wide. Who are the Black Americans that you most admire for the positive impact they've made on, not just on black rights, but the human rights of people everywhere?