Black History Live: Meet Harriet Tubman

Harriet Tubman, born Araminta Ross in Dorchester County, Maryland, escaped slavery and became one of America’s greatest champions of freedom and civil rights. Known as “Minty” in her youth, she endured harsh conditions while being rented out to various masters starting at the age of five. After escaping to freedom, she returned to Maryland repeatedly, rescuing approximately 70 slaves, including her family. She was guided by her faith, intelligence, and determination. Tubman upheld the conservative values of her time—faith, temperance, and love of country—while fiercely opposing slavery, women’s disenfranchisement, and injustice. During the Civil War, she served as a Union nurse, spy, and raid leader, freeing over 750 slaves in one operation. Later, she settled in Auburn, New York, where she sheltered fugitives and advocated for abolition and women’s suffrage. Tubman’s tireless dedication to freedom, equality, and justice solidifies her legacy as a champion of civil rights, a feminist, and…