They Were Her Property: White Women as Slave Owners in the American South

by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers

Book Overview

Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in History: a bold and searing investigation into the role of white women in the American slave economy

"Stunning."--Rebecca Onion, Slate

"Makes a vital contribution to our understanding of our past and present."--Parul Sehgal, New York Times

"Bracingly revisionist. . . . A] startling corrective."--Nicholas Guyatt, New York...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0300251831
• ISBN13: 9780300251838
• Release Date: January 2020
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.1" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Read This Book!

Trigger warning for this and the quote pages. TW: violence, death, starvation But I felt that my words wouldn't do justice, and I wanted to share even more quotes but, well, just to go read the book. And NEVER let someone tell you that it was only in the South, only by the white men, the women didn't do anything and were kind, etc etc. Hogwash. Humans are humans. You create slavery, and you allow those who want to be pure evil the ability to do so. I've had my eye on this book since Black History Month, but I've had to slow down on my reading as my job gets busier and this book wasn't available in Libby. However I restarted my Scribd subscription and it was on there! I immediately read it (a couple weeks ago). I chose not to share some of the brutality and stories, both because I didn't want this post to get flagged and because I genuinely mean it when I say EVERY person who has any amount of European American ancestry NEEDS to read this book. There is accountability that needs to happen. We are not even 200 years from slavery yet it is forgotten. We are closer to Jim Crow, with the possibility of its return, and it is forgotten. We have blamed those who were poor and starving for the redlining which was created to drive them further into poverty by the white lawyers and politicians. And we have tried VERY hard to hide the fact that this is still happening today... The truth is that this book is well sourced. I know of the stories' sources because I have another book, of just a couple dozen stories straight from the oral history gathered by the government. And if you follow me or know me, you know that history is very important to me. Especially family history. I'm currently gathering audio (which I plan to transcribe) from my mother of her life and Abuelita, who died when I was only 2, and Grandpa. I am proudly Native, proudly Mexican, proudly Jewish, and even proudly Welsh (though I admit I know very little of Wales or its history). But that Welsh means that I too have European American ancestry. And therefore, it is my duty to read and remember. To live my life today saying never again, as we do for the Holocaust. Read this book. 10/10