Footsteps to You - Chattel Slavery
Ownership in which one person has absolute power over the life, fortune, and liberty of another.
1 : a piece of property (as animals, money, or goods) other than real estate
2 : Slave
“Publications and artifacts from the 1800s help us to obtain a greater insight and understanding of the institution of slavery in America as it relates to the growth and development of this country. These items can also help us to understand and appreciate the courage and strength millions of enslaved African men, women, and children had to possess in order to endure, overcome and fight against the physical and psychological terrors of slavery. It educates us on the tremendous abuses leveled on humans for over 300 years to build the wealthiest and most powerful nation in the history of this world.” - The Gore Collection
This exhibition of original artifacts from the collection of Jerry Gore encompasses a specific portion of the Era of Enslavement in the United States. It allows students to view up close documents such as tax receipts from the sale of human beings, wills passing property from one generation to the next, first edition slave narratives, and slave shackles. As we learn from the Gore Collection, curated by the Black Voice Foundation, we will ask several questions including: If presented with the opportunity, which side of history would you choose?
Historian Jerry Gore believed that “you can’t talk about the Underground Railroad without talking about slavery." His goal during the span of his career was to tell the most clear and concise vision of what slavery was all about so that visitors to his hometown of Maysville, Kentucky could better appreciate those pearls about people trying to make it to freedom. This partnership with the Black Voice Foundation (Gore Collection) and University of California, Riverside now brings these unique artifacts to the Inland Empire.
The Black Voice Foundation has hosted over 1400 educators on the Footsteps to Freedom tour where they have walked the steps of freedom seekers from the 1800s for more than 21 years. This experience allows you to look with empathy through the eyes of those who were on the historic journey of the Underground Railroad.
About the Foundation:
The Black Voice Foundation was founded in 1988 with a mission to train and educate individuals in print media. With the digital revolution, the rapid growth of technology in the world of communications and media, and the need to impact lives through a diverse set of multi media platforms; the foundation has expanded its mission to include a new set of projects in the area of education, professional development, history, and the arts.
University of California, Riverside
The Tomás Rivera Library serves as the main library of the campus providing access to materials in the humanities, social sciences, and arts. Special Collections & University Archives house archives and manuscript collections, photographs, maps, books, and other rare or unique research material that document a wide range of subject areas. As a partner of the American Collections Advisory Board, UCR Library's has planned collaborative efforts to share, create, and sustain knowledge among ethnic groups whose history and experiences are woven into the fabric of the country.