Slavery to Liberation- The African American Experience, 2019a

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liberated approximately seventy enslaved people, including her parents, siblings, and
other loved ones. 43
CONCLUSION
For many freedom seekers, family was central to self-emancipation. The threat of
permanent separation spurred many enslaved men and women to escape. While
some refugee families fled together, others devised alternative strategies to diminish
the heightened risks posed by family flight. While most escaped alone, others were
aided by free African Americans and White abolitionists in the Northern states and
Upper Canada. Some freedom seekers even put their own safety at risk to liberate
their enslaved loved ones. Even after securing their own liberty, African American
refugees never forgot the kinship ties which sustained them throughout their lives.
Discussion Questions
1. Why was family important to enslaved African Americans?
2. What were the primary motivations behind self-emancipation?
3. What strategies did enslaved families employ to escape?
4. How did freedom seekers sustain family bonds after escaping from
enslavement?
Writing Prompts
Historians face numerous challenges in documenting the lives of enslaved and free
African Americans prior to the U.S. Civil War. The relative scarcity of primary sources
relating to African Americans challenges scholars to find new ways to document their
lives. This chapter employed autobiographies and testimonies, newspapers, and
abolitionist records. Write a short essay on the strengths and weaknesses of these
43
Kate Clifford Larson, Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman, Portrait of an
American Hero (NEW YORK: Ballantine, 2004), xvii. Also see Clinton, Harriet
Tubman.