The concepts of freedom and bondage are intimately connected with the history of the United States, particularly when examining them when looking at slavery and the subsequent effects. Questions such as, “What does it mean to be free? How are people free? Is it possible to be physically in bondage, yet mentally free?” arise when examining these concepts. Often times, how we conceptualize freedom and bondage is wrapped up in the current moment and linked to oppressive systems. However, to offer an objective, straightforward description of these concepts, the Oxford dictionary defines freedom as, “The power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.” Bondage, defined as, “The state of being a slave,” leaves less room for interpretation. Nonetheless, the lives and works of the women we read in Black Women’s Lives allows us to better examine these layered, complex topics.
Delving into the lives of five extraordinary black women—Phillis Wheatley, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Anna Julia Cooper and fictional character Iola Leroy—from the 18th and 19th centuries provides further insight into our understandings of freedom and bondage. Each of them has addressed the theme of freedom and bondage in their works, some more overtly than others. Phillis Wheatley’s thoughts surrounding freedom and bondage are illuminated through her poetry, whereas Anna Julia Cooper’s engagement with the themes are conveyed through her ideas surrounding progress, education, and women. Sojourner Truth’s notions of freedom and bondage are seen throughout her life, being born into slavery and subsequently emancipating herself. Similar to Truth, Ida B. Wells was born a slave and was later emancipated. Her story emulates the themes of freedom and bondage through her activism and journalism against white supremacy. Further, her work regarding lynching shows another form of bondage black people continued to be subjected to. In Iola Leroy, these themes are present in the capture of Iola after she recently learned of her true heritage, after living her entire life believing that she was a white woman. It is also emphasized in Harper’s interpretation of Christianity as being the root of bondage and freedom for black people in America.
If anything has been learned throughout the course it is black women’s experiences are similar but not monolithic. Each woman presented has faced a form of bondage and freedom in their lives.
What Does It Mean to Be Free? To Be in Bondage?
Overwhelmingly, all five women show the various forms of freedom and bondage take; they are not unchanging concepts, firmly set. Instead, freedom and bondage differ depending on time and place. Most of the women presented during the course share a sense of bondage through enslavement. Phillis Wheatley, Anna Julia Cooper, and Ida B. Wells attribute freedom to intellect and education. Sojourner Truth attributed freedom to the recreation of self-identity. All these women further also used activism to express their freedom.
Today, black women continue to fight for more rights, more equality, more freedom. From Ava Duvernay creating the film 13th, challenging the prison industrial complex to Tarana Burke taking a stand against sexual assault, black women continue to address surrounding freedom and bondage.
– Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar performing ‘Freedom’ at the 2016 BET Awards
The performance began with a quote from MLK Jr’s ‘I Have A Dream Speech,’ immediately situating the song in the context of Civil Rights. The song itself is dedicated to black women, emphasizing their fight for liberation. Full of Biblical references, allusions to police violence, and social movements, ‘Freedom’ is one example of how black women continue to emphasis the need and want for freedom.
“When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness… we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt… So we have come to cash this check — a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.” (From MLK Jr’s ‘I Have A Dream’ Speech)