Breaking the Bonds of Bondage
A common man's movement to end slavery
A meeting to talk about the evil that is slavery
We are coming together to talk about the this terrible condition in the South. Nearly 450 slaves were sold recently to settle the debt of our owner, Master Butler. Sadly, one of our dearest, my baby girl Emma, was sold. Our fellow slaves were not given a choice and suffered emotionally as well as physically. Mr. Butler, like so many owners around here, broke his promise to keep us together. Families were torn apart as a result of this sale. I wasn't able to stop them from taking Emma. This event was so terrible that even God cried. Mattie and I have never seen such a storm before or since. Since the sale, Emma is with Mistress Henfield and we don't know how she is doing. All we know is some slaves ran away and now Mistress Henfield's slaves were sent to Jake Pendle's plantation, a horrible place.
The time has come to do more. Mattie has been successfully taking her revenge through her "special ingredient" added to every meal. I am hoping that Isaac will be able to permanently "fix" up Mr. Butler for what he's done. Those white folks don't know or don't care that we have the same feelings as them and hurt the same when our families are destroyed.
Sources: Day of Tears by Julius Lester, pages 3, 104-106, 140,
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2918.html
Before the US Civil War, four million slaves lived in the US South. These slaves mostly worked the large fields of the plantations from sunrise to sunset and sometimes beyond. The slaves were bought and sold like livestock ranging in price from $250-$1250. The homes on the plantations made for the slaves, slave quarters, where very crowded and in poor condition. The food provided for slaves was just to keep them going and usually consists of molasses, bacon, and cornbread. If they were lucky they got the scraps from the master's table. Since they were viewed as property, not people, slaves could not get married without the master's permission and the master could separate a husband and wife whenever he wanted.
http://www.crf-usa.org/black-history-month/slavery-in-the-american-south
No human being should have to live this way. Every man should have the right to live his or her life as they choose. Unfortunately the slavery still continues because people still support it...but all is not lost. Together we can develop plans and build up the support of sufferers and sympathizers to finally put an end to slavery. Please join us!!!!
Sunday, May 3, 1857, 11:00 PM
The big oak near the Butler plantation
11:00 Gathering
11:30 Prayer of the Slaves
Midnight Meeting
1:00am Food and drink