Sojourner Truth (American Lives)

In 1865, an African American woman waited for a streetcar in Washington, D.C. Horses pulled the streetcar closer. The old woman waved for it to stop. But it did not slow down. She called out, "I want to ride! I want to ride!" When the streetcar finally stopped, the driver told the woman she had to sit near the horses with the other African Americans. The woman refused. "I know my rights," she said, as she took her seat among the white passengers.Jennifer Blizin Gillis is the author of 'Sojourner Truth (American Lives)', published 2005 under ISBN 9781403469885 and ISBN 1403469881.