Sojourner Truth Comes to Life at Rockwell Museum
  Sojourner Truth was an early civil activist. Debra Zuill will portray Truth at the Rockwell Museum. |
"I have borne 13 children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman?" she said. "Then that little man in black there, he says women can't have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him. If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back , and get it right side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them."
It has been more than 125 years since Truth was laid to rest in Battle Creek, Mich., yet her voice can still be heard today. In honor of her legacy — and the legacy of many African-American historical heroes — the Norman Rockwell Museum will present "Ain't I a Woman: The Story of Sojourner Truth" on Saturday, Feb. 26, beginning at 5 p.m.
The presentation is part of the museum's "Witnessing History" performance series which began nearly eight years ago. Since then, said education curator Tom Daly, the series has given life to history and perspective to audiences.
"In many cases these characters are literally coming back from the dead," Daly said in a phone interview. "When we first found out that we were going to have the [Jerry] Pinkney exhibition, we thought 'how could we build this program here?' We had Harriet Tubman, she was a rock star. But Sojourner Truth wasn't as well known. But her story fits perfectly with what we are trying to do. She was part of that first wave of the Civil Rights movement. She was really fighting for human rights."
Actress Debra Zuill of Saugerties, N.Y., will play the role of Truth, a character she has become very close to over the years, playing her role most notably for the annual Stone House Day every July in Hurley, N.Y., near Truth's birthplace. Zuill's performance at the museum will be the first since her husband died last month. She said that, as always, the voice of Truth will find its way through her, no matter the circumstances.
"She has a very strong voice up through the ages," Zuill said. "The first time I did Sojourner Truth was when we needed a re-enactment for Stonehouse day. We set it up like an interview and I researched her life — I'm a history buff — and in researching I came up with her most famous speech. Then we changed it a little bit so that we would have people asking me questions and hecklers in the audience while I said my speech, just like it would've been for her. Well, our professional heckler wasn't wearing period clothes and after the performance he told me he thought that some people in the audience were going to kill him for what he was doing!"
 U.S. stamp designed by Jerry Pinkney, whose work is being exhibited at the museum. |
Fortunately, Zuill and her crew have worked out the heckling problem (he is now in period costume), but the experience, she said, is the same.
"Women were not equals, they were not allowed to talk," she said. "As for a black woman, a former slave, to get up and say something, well that's unheard of. Sojourner Truth was a bulwark. She could outdo any man. Her faith was so terribly strong, she had a mission to go out and share the truth. She watched her children being sold, one by one, in front of her. She had to be strong."
It is this message of strength that Daly hopes will spread in the local community. The third piece in the series will focus on Elizabeth Freeman, bringing history full circle to Berkshire County's doorstep.
"The tie to Berkshire County history is so strong," he said. "Elizabeth Freeman's freedom was crafted in Sheffield. Here, we have an opportunity to highlight what people have done. That freedom was tremendous. Agrippa Hull, Samuel Harrison, Du Bois — they would not be here without that cloak of freedom. Western Massachusetts was a safe haven. Out here, you had to rely on your neighbors if you wanted to survive. It didn't really matter what color they were."
Zuill said she appreciates the power of Truth's story and those who have paved the way since.
"No one can forget Dr. King, or Frederick Douglass or JFK, or even our president now," she said. "He got the whole world saying 'yes we can.' When people see this performance I just hope they go away with a greater knowledge of this woman. I tell you, when somebody speaks her name I immediately go into character. Then, it's so hard for me to get out."
