#Henrietta Wood

[todaysdocument]

Henrietta Wood had been kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1853. After the Civil War, she sued her kidnapper for $20k to cover lost wages. 

On April 17, 1878, a jury awarded Wood $2,500. This is still the largest amount awarded by a U.S. Court as reparations for slavery. 

Record Group 21: Records of District Courts of the United States

Series: Civil Case Files

File Unit: Henrietta Wood vs. Zeb Ward

Transcription: 

No 1431

Henrietta Wood

V

Zeb Ward

Verdict

We, the Jury in the above entitled cause, do find for the plaintiff and assess her damages in the premise at Two thousand five hundred dollars $2,500.

D D Conover, Foreman.

[tani-b-art]

Black women who fought for reparations.

Àbáké Matilda McCrear (she was just two years old when she arrived in Mobile, Alabama, in July 1860, a captive aboard the infamous Clotilda, the last known slave ship to bring Africans to America. She died in 1940 at the age 82, making her the last known survivor of the last known slave ship.)

...Matilda had walked the 17 miles to Selma to request that she receive some compensation, too, for being kidnapped and brought to the country as a toddler. As proof that she was from Africa, she showed the marks on her cheek.

The judge denied her any reparations just as Timothy Meaher, the slaveowner who organized the illegal Clotilda journey, had denied reparations to the ship’s survivors back in 1865.

McCrear made a claim for herself and Redoshi.

Redoshi, also known as Sally Smith, was the second to last living, African-born survivor of North American slavery, and the only female survivor of the transatlantic slave trade known to have been recorded on film. Born on the coast of West Africa in what is present day Benin, Redoshi was one of about 110 West African children and adults who were human cargo of the schooner Clotilda, the last slave ship to reach the United States. She may have been 110 years old when she died in Alabama in 1937.

*************************************************

In 1870, Henrietta Wood Sued for Reparations—and Won

The $2,500 verdict, the largest ever of its kind, offers evidence of the generational impact such awards can have.

*************************************************

Callie House is most famous for her efforts to gain reparations for former slaves and is regarded as the early leader of the reparations movement among African American political activists. Callie Guy was born a slave in Rutherford Country near Nashville, Tennessee. Her date of birth is usually assumed to be 1861, but due to the lack of birth records for slaves, this date is not certain.

*************************************************

Belinda Sutton [also known as Belinda Royal/Royall] was the author of one of the earliest known slave narratives by an African woman in the United States and a successful early petitioner for reparations for enslavement.

[forthosebefore]

Women pioneers of reparations

I’ve previously posted about Henrietta Wood. Here are some other early women pioneers for reparations.

Belinda Sutton

Belinda (Royal) Sutton was born in 1712 in Ghana. She was abandoned by her enslaver, who had offered emancipation upon his death or her transfer to his daughter. If she chose freedom he provided 30 pounds for three years so she wouldn’t be a public charge. In 1783, at 63 years old, Sutton filed a petition to the Massachusetts General Court requesting a pension from the estate of her former enslaver. In her petition she recalled her life in Africa as a joyful one full of love prior to her captivity and enslavement. Sutton’s testimony describing the happy times with family in Africa contradicted the narrative that the enslaved were happy in their captivity. She won her claim and was awarded 15 pounds and 12 shillings annually. She had to fight continuously for that award to be honored and paid.

Belinda Sutton’s […] petition of 1783 is among the earliest narratives by an African American woman. […] It has been seen by some commentators as the first call for reparations for American slavery [and] opens a rare window onto the life on an enslaved woman in colonial North America.

To read the full text of Belinda Sutton’s first petition, click here. All of her petitions are available through the Antislavery Petitions Massachusetts Dataverse, maintained by Harvard University.

Callie House

Callie House was born enslaved in Rutherford County, Tennessee, in 1861. In 1897, at 36 years old, she founded the National Ex-Slave Mutual Bounty and Pension Association (MB&PA) to seek financial support for former slaves left without resources. With Isiah Dickerson she traveled to former slave states to encourage others to join the organization. The organization was eager to petition Congress for a bill that would grant payments (reparations) and mutual aid for burial expenses. Their grass-roots advocacy grew in membership to hundreds of thousands of formerly enslaved residents all over the country. The government used three agencies to try to stop this movement: the Federal Bureau of Pensions, the Department of Justice and the Post Office Department. On September 1899, the Post Office issued a fraud order, without evidence, against MB&PA, which made it illegal for them to send mail, cash or money orders. House resisted by invoking the 1st, 14th and 15th amendments and hiring an attorney.

Congress rejected the pensions petition, as if it was not to be taken seriously, and postponed it indefinitely.

In 1909, when Dickerson died, House became the leader of the MB&PA. In 1915, under House’s leadership, the class action lawsuit Johnson v McAdoo was filed in U.S. Federal Court requesting reparations for slavery in the amount of $68 million. This amount was cotton tax money collected from 1862 to 1868 and held by the U.S. Treasury Department. A former slave, H. N. Johnson, led the charge as the plaintiff against U.S. Secretary of the Treasury William G. McAdoo. The U.S. Supreme Court denied the claim. This was the first documented litigation for reparations for American chattel slavery in a U.S. federal court.

The following year, House was arrested on charges of fraud from the Post Office, convicted by an all-white, all-male jury and sentenced to a year in jail, deliberately hampering the reparations movement.

Callie House died from cancer in Nashville, Tennessee on June 6, 1928, at the age of 67. Source: Greenbelt News Review, BlackPast.org, RoyallHouse.org

Visit www.attawellsummer.com/forthosebefore to learn more about Black history and read new blog posts first.

Need a freelance graphic designer or illustrator? Send me an email.

[lilithaine]

Lily couldn’t help but smile as PJ playfully teased Hen, the warmth radiating from their laughter wrapping around her like a cozy blanket. It was a feeling she’d cherish forever. Watching Hen's eyes glisten with unshed tears tugged at her heartstrings and she quickly brushed her own tears away before anyone noticed. When PJ drew her closer, she was mindful of his injuries, but the moment their lips met, everything else faded. It started tenderly but quickly ignited into something electric, leaving her breathless. The kisses she shared with both PJ and Hen felt special in different ways, each moment leaving its own mark on her heart. Nestling into PJ’s side while pulling Hen in tighter, she craved the warmth and comfort after the whirlwind of chaos and pain earlier in the night. It was all starting to sink in and with vulnerability washing over her, she whispered, “I just need you both right now... I'm grateful to be able to face whatever comes next together.” @immcrtalsx & @mcnstercus

"Really crappy with words? Says the one who may have said like the most romantic thing I've ever heard," she said to PJ. When Lily spoke, she squeezed her hand lightly and when she was done, Hen fanned her watery eyes lightly. "You guys are going to make me cry," she said with a small laugh. "I think all that adrenaline is kind of wearing off right now." Hen covered her face lightly, a blush spreading across her cheeks.

( @immcrtalsx / @lilithaine )

[hollow-fantasy]

[etruatcaelum]

[ @scareqrowbranwen | ? // for henrietta ]

“Hey, lady, wait–!”

The arm the huntsman throws out to bar her from disembarking before the craft has completed its landing impedes Henrietta not at all: she simply ducks under him and vaults outside before the man has time to register that she has no intention of acting the tame little civilian to his authoritative huntsman.

It is a drop of perhaps two meters. She lands light on her feet, sinking into a deep crouch to cushion the impact, and then springs up and forward to accost the first vaguely-recognizable youth she lays eyes on.

“You!” she cries. “Girl–” Not the one from the broadcast (and what had her name been? Rue? Rhubarb? something gardeny…) but she looks to be of a similar age, and her face has the same seen-it-on-the-news familiarity. Henrietta pulls up short in front of her, arms crossed and eyebrows disappearing into the riot of mahogany curls flopping over her forehead. “You look likely. I am here for Oscar Pine.”

[lilithaine]

Lily loved the time she'd been spending with Henrietta and PJ. When the three decided to go for brunch, Lily jumped at the idea. She got dressed in some jeans and a green blouse. She threw on some flats and her mother's earrings that she gave her. Lily was out of the house and walking up to the restaurant within fifteen minutes. That's when she spotted Hen sitting outside at a table. She walked up to her with a shy smile on her face. "This is perfect," she nodded at her question. "How are you today?"

closed starter - hen & lily & pj ( @lilithaine / @immcrtalsx )

Henrietta let herself soak up the sun, sunglasses on. She loved the fact vampire rings were made, because she would've missed the sun when she turned. Hen smiled when she saw the other. "Is this spot okay? I love a good brunch in the sun," she replied. "We can move inside though if you want to?"

[artparks-sculpture]

A sculpture titled 'Colouring in Grass and Sky (Big Fun Crayon Lawn statue)' by sculptor Henrietta Bud. In a medium of wood, steel.

[candy-baroque]

yaaaay artfight!

[lilithaine]

“Knock, knock,” she called out through the open window. Lily was on her route to dropping off goodies from her garden when she came by Henrietta’s home. She saw that she was home through her window and wanted to check in on the girl. When she answered the door, she smiled, “Hi, how are you?” @mcnstercus​

[nctural]

"i don't know how to go back to the person i was hen - i feel like she died." the blonde admitted, swallowing thickly. "i've tried in my own way to reach out for help and i don't think she understood that was what i was doing." astoria shook her head, knowing that this whole situation was her whole fault. "don't you think some things might be too broken for anyone to want to fix?"

"We're both little kids in her eyes given that we're centuries younger than her, but maybe, be a little kid with her. Let her help you, let yourself be vulnerable around her. You've grown up, but it's okay to feel young every once in a while. Maybe that's what she needs from you. For you to ask her for help."

[theambitiouswoman]

Book Recommendations 📚📒

Business and Leadership:

"Good to Great" by Jim Collins

"The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries

"Zero to One" by Peter Thiel

"Leaders Eat Last" by Simon Sinek

"Outliers: The Story of Success" by Malcolm Gladwell

Success and Personal Development:

"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen R. Covey

"Mindset: The New Psychology of Success" by Carol S. Dweck

"Atomic Habits" by James Clear

"Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance" by Angela Duckworth

"The Power of Habit" by Charles Duhigg

Mental Health and Well-being:

"The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle

"Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy" by David D. Burns

"The Gifts of Imperfection" by Brené Brown

"The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook" by Edmund J. Bourne

"The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook" by Matthew McKay, Jeffrey C. Wood, and Jeffrey Brantley

Goal Setting and Achievement:

"Goals!: How to Get Everything You Want—Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible" by Brian Tracy

"The 12 Week Year" by Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington

"Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us" by Daniel H. Pink

"The One Thing" by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan

"Smarter Faster Better" by Charles Duhigg

Relationships and Communication:

"How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie

"The 5 Love Languages" by Gary Chapman

"Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High" by Al Switzler, Joseph Grenny, and Ron McMillan

"Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life" by Marshall B. Rosenberg

"Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus" by John Gray

Self-Help and Personal Growth:

"The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck" by Mark Manson

"Daring Greatly" by Brené Brown

"Awaken the Giant Within" by Tony Robbins

"The Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod

"You Are a Badass" by Jen Sincero

Science and Popular Science:

"Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

"The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

"Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

"A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

"The Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkins

Health and Nutrition:

"The China Study" by T. Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell II

"In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollan

"Why We Sleep" by Matthew Walker

"Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall

"The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan

Fiction and Literature:

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee

"1984" by George Orwell

"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger

"Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen

[forthosebefore]

Black Woman Won Largest Reparations Award at Time From U.S. Courts in 1878

In 1878, Henrietta Wood, a formerly “illegally” enslaved Black woman, was awarded $2,500 in reparations by an all-white jury — the most significant sum of its kind that a U.S. court had granted.

Wood initially sought $20,000 for being kidnapped and illegally enslaved in an 1870 lawsuit, Business Insider reported. But was awarded a smaller amount. While it may not seem like a lot, the $2,500 total would equate to more than $75,000 today, the outlet noted.

Wood used her settlement to move with her son, aiding his education. The outlet noted that he became one of the first Black law graduates from what is now Northwestern University’s School of Law.

Born into slavery between 1818 and 1820 in Kentucky, Wood was sold multiple times before finally gaining freedom in 1848 from her owner’s wife, Jane Cirode, who wanted to avoid debt collectors. According to Business Insider, the wife of William Cirode — a French immigrant who had abandoned his family due to legal reasons — had rented Wood out as a domestic servant.

Wood was illegally recaptured just five years later by a deputy sheriff in Kentucky named Zebulon Ward, whom Cirode’s daughter and son-in-law hired. Following the Civil War, Wood sued Ward for damages and won the most significant reparations case the U.S. courts had awarded.

The battle Wood began sadly continues with reparations still being denied to most African Americans. Now, more than a century later, federal reparations remain a question despite unprecedented Congressional apologies for slavery. In 2008-2009. Rep. Steve Cohen wrote in a resolution that the nation must seek “reconciliation, justice, and harmony.”

While state efforts have emerged, national progress stalls. Rep. Cori Bush said in May 2023: “Black people … cannot wait any longer for our government to … address the harm it has caused,” Business Insider reported.

Source: Black Enterprise, Wikipedia, Library of Congress

Visit www.attawellsummer.com/forthosebefore to learn more about Black history.

Need a freelance graphic designer or illustrator? Send me an email.

[immcrtalsx]

"Oh it was a beautiful wedding, far better than other royal ones I've been to. Iconic really. I mean if that is how you start a marriage, no wonder it was so successful. Vic told me later it was love at first sight and a very memorable night if you know what I mean. Al said the same thing," Adelina explained over her glass of champagne, "This wedding though? Amazing. They're adorable, don't you think?" she asked Hen as she pointed out Mariza and Alex with the twins on the dance floor.

@mcnstercus ( Hen )

[lilithaine]

Lily smiled softly, sipping her drink and listening to the conversation around her. She was grateful to both PJ and Hen for having her back. Being with the two of them was the most comfortable she's felt in a while. She hoped she was able to spend more time with them in the next couple of weeks. When PJ said he wasn't usually considered fun, Lily smiled at him. "Yeah? I think I like that idea," she said. "I want to get to know you both more." @mcnstercus & @immcrtalsx

Hen took a seat next to Lily, grabbing her own coffee, taking a long drink of it. She loved when it was steaming, it felt good running down her throat. "Well PJ was telling me about this promise you two had where you'd always be safe there, thankfully he was there to help. With us around, we always got your back," she said. "I definitely know I can say that for myself, but with PJ's promise, I trust that with him too. Maybe we can try a night there that's slightly less crowded to ease back in? I was definitely having fun before everything. Maybe next time on a day when you're off," she said, looking at PJ. "So you can come with us, have some fun yourself. I'd say after last night, you deserve it."

@immcrtalsx // @lilithaine

[bi4bisamjess]

something something adansey something something summer in the south. christ! adam sits with gansey in the dark of the woods on the ley line. he goes to the public library on the bus to do research about glendower and prints out photocopies to go in gansey's journal. they do the saturday crossword together. adam stops on the side of the road to pick the blackberries growing. he rides his bike to monmoth to share them with gansey. they sit in the pig and listen to the oldies station on the radio. gansey watches adam trim his hair using craft scissors over st. agnes' bathroom sink. adam collects cardboard for gansey's henrietta. it feels impossible that they are only 17. the sit on the front stoop of monmoth and watch the birds. they watch the sunrise. they are thankful and horrified that they are still alive at all.