Ms. Terra Hunter

Dear Terra Hunter,

Your reading was extremely informative and I greatly appreciated your honest historical narrative of the lives and experiences of black women in the South. When reading your piece I quickly became overwhelmed by feelings of frustration and anger. These feelings may be assumed to be a result of reading and learning about the horrifying experiences that my black female ancestors went through, however my feelings of frustration and anger are targeted at the education system and how it robbed me of this important history. As a black woman living in the United States, as a black woman who is the descendants of slaves... why am I just learning about the real experiences of black women at the age of 22? Why, as a senior at one of the most seemingly prestigious universities am I just now learning that General Sherman who besieged the city of Atlanta and applauded for the Union's victory also allowed for his troops to rape black women and destroy black owned property? Why have I been taught that President Lincoln started the civil war to free the slaves when in reality he himself was a slave owner with no intention to liberate black people but with the sole intention to preserve the union? Ms. Terra, I am extremely privileged to be where I am today studying the true history of my people and I cannot help be think about all of the other young women, just like me, who are not afforded the same opportunity to learn about their history. There is so much power in your historical narrative and I believe that the reason I never came across your detailed historical account in school is because white people are threatened by the idea of black empowerment. This theme seems to be an old one stemming from the literacy laws enacted to prevent slaves from learning to read or write. It also reminded me a lot of Nat Turner's rebellion and how quickly white supremacists squashed his legacy in fear that other slaves would learn and become inspired to revolt. One of my passions in life is to bring historical accounts and narratives such as yours to the classrooms of young black girls and black boys in order to teach them truthful accounts of the horrors of slavery and the jim crow south in order to show them that they are the products of true resilience, courage and strength. It is so empowering to know one's true history and I want to thank you for providing me with this scholarship.

Best,
Ry