Truth Comes to the U.S. Capitol

After a nearly decade-long effort, the National Congress of Black Women on Tuesday honored Sojourner Truth by making her the first Black woman to have a memorial bust in the U.S. Capitol.

Truth, whose given name was Isabella Baumfree, was a slave who became one of the most respected abolitionists and women's rights activists.

"One could only imagine what Sojourner Truth, an outspoken, tell-it-like-it-is kind of woman ... what she would have to say about this incredible gathering," First Lady Michelle Obama said at the Celebration of Truth ceremony. "We are all here because, as my husband says time and time again, we stand on the shoulders of giants like Sojourner Truth."

Dignitaries and congressional leaders attended the ceremony marking the unveiling of the statue.
Along with musical performances, actress Cicely Tyson recited "Ain't I A Woman," Truth's famous 1851 speech to a women's rights convention. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, who worked together to draft legislation to commission the bust, were among speakers who paid tribute to the late C. Delores Tucker, former chairwoman of the NCBW, who spearheaded the effort for the Truth memorial.

Secretary of State Clinton said, "She is a sojourner of truth, by truth, and for truth. And her words, her example and her legacy will never perish from this earth, so long as men and women stand up and say loudly and clearly, 'We hear you echoing down through the years of history. We believe that your journey is not yet over, and we will make the rest of that journey with you.' "

The bronze statue, which was crafted by Los Angeles, California, sculptor Artis Lane, will stand in Emancipation Hall at the Capitol Visitor Center. "All the visitors in the U.S. Capitol will hear the story of brave women who endured the greatest of humanity's indignities. They'll hear the story of Sojourner Truth, who didn't allow those indignities to destroy her spirit, who fought for her own freedom and then used her powers ... to help others," First Lady Obama said.