But did she actually utter these famous words?  Barring the discovery of some new evidence, we will never know for certain.

There are two main written accounts of her speech.  The first one was published a month after her speech by her friend Marius Robinson in an abolitionist newspaper called The Anti-Slavery Bugle.  Robinson, a minister, abolitionist, and newspaper editor, attended the convention and witnessed her speech.  His version does not have the words “Ain’t I a woman” in it.

The other account was published by Frances Gage, a co-organizer of the convention and significant figure in the Woman’s Rights Movement.  Her version does have Sojourner Truth asking, “Ain’t I a woman?” four times.  However, Gage’s credibility is weakened by a few things.  First and foremost, her version was published in 1863 – 12 years after the speech was delivered!  Second, there is a major factual inaccuracy.  Gage claims Truth stated she had given birth to 13 children, whereas Truth is only known to have claimed to have five children.  Lastly, the dialect is incorrect.  Gage’s version gives Truth a stereotypical black southern dialect.  But the fact of the matter is Truth was born in New York and spoke English with a Dutch accent, as Dutch was her first language.  Was “Ain’t I a Woman” artistic license on Gage’s part?  Or, did Truth actually use this dramatic refrain in her speech?

Gage published a subsequent account in History of Woman Suffrage (1881).  In this version the black southern dialect was intensified.  Indeed, this version reads more like the script of a minstrel show than a speech at a women’s rights convention.

An interesting activity to try with students is to have them read these three versions and ask them to gauge their veracity.  Some students will immediately gravitate to the difference in year of publication.  Others will question whether Marius Robinson, a 19^th century white man, can be relied upon to give an accurate report.  And some will even believe that the minstelized version is the most correct because it “sounds” right.  With teacher facilitation the students will eventually sort this out and learn some valuable lessons about reading primary sources critically.

Perhaps the hardest thing for students to wrap their minds around is that we really don’t know and will probably never know what Sojourner Truth said in her speech.  But as I explain to my students, that is part of the study of history.

If you’re interested in teaching students about Sojourner Truth and her famous speech, here is a link to my product on Teachers Pay Teachers:
Sojourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman” Speech — Comparing Differing Accounts