Sojourner Truth Essay Sample

The first way that Sojourner Truth proved to be philanthropic was through all of her volunteer work. In 1846, at the beginning of the Civil War, Truth gathered supplies for black volunteer regiments (“Sojourner Truth”). Truth was a strong advocate for the Union cause and devoted lots of her time assisting the African American soldiers in any way she could. Furthermore, Truth worked to promote the welfare of African Americans by rallying and encouraging blacks to join the war and fight for their right to liberty. According to womenshistory.org, “After the war she was honored with an invitation to the White House and became involved with the Freedmen's Bureau, helping freed slaves find jobs and build new lives.” Not only was Truth getting involved in the Civil Rights Movement from the beginning, but she continued to find ways to support freed slaves after the Civil War was over. Her work with the Freedmen’s Bureau proved this to be true as she spent numerous hours providing food, shelter, clothing, medical services, and land to newly freed African Americans. Shortly after in the same year, Truth accepted an appointment with an organization called the National Freedman’s Relief Association where she offered counseling to former slaves who were struggling with resettlement into society (“Sojourner Truth”). As one could imagine, Truth excelled at this role since she had to go through the same process after she escaped from slavery. In this position, she not only dedicated her time, but also her knowledge and advice to African Americans in need as well. Truth’s dedication to a diverse number of volunteer projects including assisting during the Civil War, working with the Freedmen’s Bureau, and providing counseling to African Americans in need, proves her to be nothing short of Philanthropic.  

The second way that Sojourner Truth demonstrated being philanthropic was through her words of advocacy and encouragement. The moment that Truth knew she would dedicate her life to others was when she started hearing voices that she believed to be god calling out to her. “To pursue this calling, she adopted the name ‘Sojourner Truth.’ ‘Sojourner’ reflected that she would travel the land, and ‘Truth’ her determination to speak the truth” (Arellano-Lopez). As she continued to hear from God, Truth traveled all across America giving speeches and rallying American citizens to advocate for Women’s Rights and African American Rights. Truth’s whole life revolved around what she could do for others and how to accomplish her dreams of an equal society. A big milestone for Truth, where gained a lot of prominence as a speaker, was at a women’s rights convention in Ohio where she delivered her speech on women’s rights titled “I Ain’t Woman” (Forgotten Lives). Truth was constantly looking for ways to advance the American society by not only being an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement, but the Women’s Rights movement as well. She took the time to carefully choose the right words and phrases to instill a fire in her female audience members to want to make a change. In addition, as stated by Britannica High School, “Her reputation for personal magnetism preceded her to draw heavy crowds.” Truth spent time making personal connections with her audience in her speeches and was constantly reminding them that she was always working for their benefit. Her words of encouragement gave her audience the strength they needed to stand up for themselves, because they always knew they could rely on Sojourner Truth to fight for them. A combination of Truth’s words of advocacy and encouragement showed others around her that she was philanthropic because she was constantly working for the betterment of the American society.

The final way that Truth proved to be philanthropic was through the way she attended to those in need. “Truth learned that her five-year-old son, Peter, had been sold illegally and taken to Alabama. With support from Quaker friends, she hired a lawyer who, in 1828, succeeded in having Peter returned to his mother” (Arellano-Lopez). Truth would go to any length to ensure her son was protected, even if it meant trying the impossible. Before this case, a black woman had never won a court case against a white man. According to Biography Reference Center, “After black troops were allowed to join the Union army in 1863, Truth and her family worked to raise food for Thanksgiving dinners for the black soldiers.” Very passionate about the soldiers fighting for the Union, Truth did anything she could to keep them protected and healthy. Cooking up a warm meal for people in need was a common act of giving for Truth. Similarly, as she watched women be discriminated against in society, Truth stood up and conducted daily acts of protest in hopes of bringing the women she loved justice. Even though it was illegal for women to vote at this time, Truth went to the polling stations on election days to try and make her voice heard but being a woman she was turned away (Forgotten Lives). Truth never stopped advocating for those in society who were oppressed. Her daily acts of protest were ways to show society that she would always be a voice for those in need. The lengths that Truth would go for her family members and groups in society that she cared about demonstrates that she was philanthropic because she was always working for the welfare of others.