Sojourner Truth[1]--her story is epic and deservedly recounted throughout the generations. This telling of Truth’s story holds a little known footnote—written nearly a century after she died! Here’s how it came to pass.

Born into slavery in the state of New York circa 1797, she managed to escape with her daughter in 1826—but her son remained behind in bondage. That would not stand. This mother’s strength and grit became legendary. Not the least of her feats was that of recovering her son and winning his freedom in court! She set the standard for black women with her legal victory over a white man in that case. She set the bar high for all women and men with her life of activism and by living up to the name she chose for herself in 1843.

She gave a little talk once that folks remember as her “Ain’t I a woman?” speech.[2] It happened one-day in 1851 in Akron, Ohio at the Women’s Rights Convention there. It’s very short but it packs a wallop.

She said, "Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted and, gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman?"

This speech and Truth’s long life of as a role model for feminist and human rights advocacy almost won her some recognition that even she could not have imagined. Gloria Steinem wanted “Sojourner” to be the name of her ground-breaking magazine.[3] Instead the magazine’s backers insisted on the shorter and, to them, more marketable title “Ms.”[4] And the rest is history.

“Ms.” magazine, like Sojourner Truth, defied all odds and made its detractors look foolish in how wrong they turned out to be. Famed newsman Harry Reasoner predicted a very early death for Steinem’s publication. Within a few short months, Harry ate his words on his own TV show as “Ms.” magazine flew off the racks. And it lives to this day.

Sojourner Truth gave many speeches in her lifetime. She said, "Man is so selfish that he has got women's rights and his own too, and yet he won't give women their rights. He keeps them all to himself."

I think Ms. Steinem got it right. Sojourner’s name is perfect for all stories and all periods dealing with justice, fairness and Truth!

Image: Sojourner Truth circa 1864[5], found online in the public domain in the United States

[1] See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sojourner_Truth - born Isabella Baumfree, chose her own name in 1843

[2] See: http://www.feminist.com/resources/artspeech/genwom/sojour.htm

[3] See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ms._%28magazine%29 “Sojourner” connoted travel, not the woman hero!

[4] See: http://msmagazine.com/ and read the 2015 Winter Edition, see article on Women of #BlackLivesMatter

[5] See: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sojourner_Truth_c1864.jpg