Speaking the Truth on Capitol Hill

Twelve-year-old Tierra had performed Sojourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech many times—in front of cameras on a morning news program, and before packed audiences in the Blacks in Wax program at the Southeast Tennis & Learning Center. But this performance was special, as Tierra—accompanied by her mother, Tamika Holloway, and RWLC Executive Director Cora Masters Barry—took part in the unveiling of a statue of Sojourner Truth in the U.S. Capitol's Emancipation Hall.

On April 28, 2009, the freedom fighter and champion of women’s rights became the first African American woman to be memorialized in the Capitol. Following the unveiling, Tierra presented an excerpt of “Ain’t I a Woman?” in a Congressional reception honoring Los Angeles sculptor Artis Lane, creator of the Sojourner Truth bust.

On a day of celebration that featured remarks from powerful women, including First Lady Michelle Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Actress Cicely Tyson, Tierra says she was a little overwhelmed—not with nerves, but with the enormity of what Sojourner Truth represented. “I started thinking about all that Sojourner Truth had to go through and all she did so women could vote and speak in public; and how she helped all people, no matter what color they were. Reading. Writing. Public speaking. Those are all things I can do because of what Sojourner Truth and others stood for. It made me think about how I should be more respectful of people, especially my elders, because of what they went through for me.”