Answering the Cry for Freedom: Stories of African Americans and the American Revolution
"Biographical sketches tell of 13 remarkable black men and women… (t)he well-told stories, illustrated with striking silhouettes by Christie, can be read independently of one another…. Accessible, inspiring accounts of courageous men and women."
—Kirkus Reviews
Even as American Patriots fought for independence from British rule during the Revolutionary War, oppressive conditions remained in place for the thousands of enslaved and free African Americans living in this country. But African Americans took up their own fight for freedom by joining the British and American armies; preaching, speaking out, and writing about the evils of slavery; and establishing settlements in Nova Scotia and Africa.
The thirteen stories featured in this collection spotlight charismatic individuals who answered the cry for freedom, focusing on the choices they made and how they changed America both then and now. These individuals include: Boston King, Agrippa Hull, James Armistead Lafayette, Phillis Wheatley, Elizabeth "Mumbet" Freeman, Prince Hall, Mary Perth, Ona Judge, Sally Hemings, Paul Cuffee, John Kizell, Richard Allen, and Jarena Lee. Includes individual bibliographies and timelines, author note, and source notes.
Author: Gretchen Woelfle. Gretchen Woelfle has won two Eureka! awards from the California Reading Association; and awards from the Children’s Literature Council, the L.A. Museum of Tolerance and the PEN Center, to name just a few. When Gretchen is not traveling the world hunting for new stories, she lives in Los Angeles writing more biographies of unconventional characters. She is a member of Santa Monica Friends Meeting.
Recommended for age 9-12.
Illustrator:
Published by Calkins Creek Books, 2016.
