My Dear Mother

The Crafting Freedom Materials Project

In this short video, we hear and see a young slave girl, Elizabeth Keckly, reading aloud letter that she wrote to her "Dear Mother" when she was separated from her as a teenager. Keckly discusses her daily life, how it feels to be overburdened with work, and how it feels to be under the constant domination of her mistress (the wife of her owner). She describes her situation as being in a "three cornered box" and expresses that she "never hopes to see her parents again." This reading underscores the pain and emotional trauma of one of slavery's most common features, the separation of children and young people from their families.

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