Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom by Ilyon Woo
The remarkable true story of Ellen and William Craft, who escaped slavery through daring, determination, and disguise, with Ellen passing as a wealthy, disabled White man and William posing as “his” slave.
In 1848, a year of international democratic revolt, a young, enslaved couple, Ellen and William Craft, achieved one of the boldest feats of self-emancipation in American history. Posing as master and slave, while sustained by their love as husband and wife, they made their escape together across more than 1,000 miles, riding out in the open on steamboats, carriages, and trains that took them from bondage in Georgia to the free states of the North.
Along the way, they dodged slave traders, military officers, and even friends of their enslavers, who might have revealed their true identities. The tale of their adventure soon made them celebrities, and generated headlines around the country. Americans could not get enough of this charismatic young couple, who traveled another 1,000 miles criss-crossing New England, drawing thunderous applause as they spoke alongside some of the greatest abolitionist luminaries of the day—among them Frederick Douglass and William Wells Brown.
But even then, they were not out of danger. With the passage of an infamous new Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, all Americans became accountable for returning refugees like the Crafts to slavery. Then yet another adventure began, as slave hunters came up from Georgia, forcing the Crafts to flee once again—this time from the United States, their lives and thousands more on the line and the stakes never higher.
With three epic journeys compressed into one monumental bid for freedom, Master Slave Husband Wife is an American love story—one that would challenge the nation’s core precepts of life, liberty, and justice for all—one that challenges us even now.
Review: In the late 1840s, an enslaved couple named Ellen and William Craft escaped slavery in Macon, Georgia. Rather than running in hiding through the underground railroad or other covert means, they did so in plain sight. Ellen's father was her former white owner, and she was light skinned enough to pass as white. She dressed as a white man, with bandages to obscure her noticeable lack of beard, and posed as the owner of her husband, William. Posing as master and slave, the pair were able to dodge would be threats to their progress and arrived in New England. Due to the nature of their escape, which successfully turned racial identities on their head for their own advantage, they quickly became celebrities and spoke throughout New England about their experiences alongside famous abolitionists of the day, including Frederick Douglass. However, because they were well known for escaping slavery, the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 put them in danger of being returned to slavery in the south and fled to Europe.
This was a truly remarkable story. The first half of the book was extremely intriguing, as it details their flight and every risk or threat to their reaching freedom in the north. The author did a great job of detailing their journey to illuminate the danger and fear they would have experienced. The history of the pair is also well detailed. It is wild to imagine being owned by one's older half-sister, as was the case for Ellen.
However, where the book lost me was once the pair arrived successfully in the north and were delivered into freedom. While the book does eventually provide the rest of their life story, it segues at this point into a general history of the abolitionist movement and spends a lot of time on side characters form history, rather than remaining focused on the Crafts. I found this section of the book far less interesting. Of course, it is always great for non-fiction books to provide enough historical context for reader understanding, but this went well beyond this and seemed to forget the focus of the book at times.
An absolutely amazing tale. I particularly appreciated how clever the Crafts were in turning racial norms of the day on their head for their own advantage in order to escape. I was surprised they felt confident enough to travel around speaking about their experiences, but in awe of their willingness to bring attention to the plights of slaves. A remarkable couple that risked it all for freedom and to remain together. I was happy they were able to start a family in freedom but do wish I knew more about what their children's lives were like.
Stars: 3.5
Comments
Post a Comment