EOTO Reflection: The Black Press

While it is certainly impressive what some major presses were able to accomplish, such as technological advancements, massive stories, and huge growth in the spread of the press, I found the EOTO on The Black Press to be particularly inspiring. It cannot be put into words how impressing and inspiring it was for a group black figures and free slaves to fight back against society by creating their own press, the Freedom’s Journal. In a time period in which even free black slaves didn’t have many rights, and were often denied a voice, this group created their own important voice.

 

During this period before the civil war, there were certainly some voices who spoke out for the black community, and fought for their rights, but these voices were almost always white people. While that was important in its own way, it was critical that free black persons were given a platform of their own, to speak of their own story and experience. In a time so cruel and brutal, even white men supporting the abolition movement would have no way to truly understand the life of a black person in America. That is why the Freedom’s Journal was so important, as it not only would give a platform for black people to spread their voice, but was created by freed slaves as well, an incredible feat.

 

One thing I found particularly powerful that was covered in the EOTO was that the publication would include the birth and death dates of black people, as the birth and death dates of slaves were not recorded since they were not viewed as human. It is a heartbreaking fact, but I was amazed that this record would be viewed as a historical record of the deaths of slaves during the period, one of the first forms of birth and death recording. I will remember the Freedom’s Journal as one of the most important publications in this nation’s history, not because of its tech advancements or massive sales, but because its mere existence was an inspiring creation, a fight against society itself. Its content was critically important in presenting a diverse perspective of views in a time without such a thing.

Sources:

https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/freedom-s-journal-1827-1829/