The Walker Family Considers the Risks of Escape

Connie Porter’s book, Finding Freedom (2014), tells the story of a young enslaved girl named Addy Walker. At the beginning of the American Civil War in the 1860s, Addy and her family live on a plantation in North Carolina. Addy and her parents, Ben and Ruth, Addy’s older brother, Sam, and Addy’s baby sister, Esther, all suffer under slavery. The family wants to be free, but the only option the family has is to run away from the plantation. Addy’s parents struggle with the decision to stay on the plantation or to run away because of the many risks that come with an attempt to escape. If the family succeeds, they may never see some of their loved ones again. If the family does not succeed, and they must return to the plantation, they face terrible punishments. Addy’s parents also know that life-threatening obstacles lie along the entire journey north, not only within a few miles of the plantation. Lastly, even if the family manages to escape the south, Ben and Ruth Walker know that new struggles await them in the north. Finding Freedom illustrates some of the many reasons why the choice to flee from slavery is not an easy one.

The Consequences

One reason why the decision to run away from the plantation is so difficult is because Addy’s parents know that their family faces great losses whether they succeed or not. Addy’s mother, Ruth, explains to Addy that Auntie Lula and Uncle Solomon cannot join them. Ruth tells Addy, “They too old to come to freedom, Addy. They can’t run” (p. 24). Addy does not initially realize that Lula and Solomon will not attempt to flee with them. Lula and Solomon are unable to undertake such a long journey north, on foot for much of the way. Lula and Solomon no longer have the strength to make the journey. While some of their loved ones are too old, others are too young. Ruth tells Addy that Addy’s baby sister Esther cannot come with them either. Ruth explains to Addy, “Esther might cry any time. Her crying would give us away” (p. 25). An escape out of North Carolina requires days and nights of not only fast moving, but also constant hiding. Addy and her family must remain undetected. Baby Esther’s unpredictable crying would put them at risk because other people might hear the baby. If Addy and her family do manage to escape the plantation, they leave loved ones behind. However, they must also consider the consequences of an unsuccessful attempt to escape. The family knows the consequences because of Sam’s failed attempt in the past. Addy remembers, “[Sam] was tracked down…and brought back. He was tied to a tree and beaten with a whip by Master Stevens” (p. 4). Addy and her parents witness firsthand what happens when an attempt to escape goes wrong. Addy remembers exactly what her brother endures. If Addy and her family leave the plantation, and people catch them, they face a life-threatening physical punishment. While a successful escape means family separation, an unsuccessful attempt means dangerous punishments that may also result in the loss of family members.

The Journey

The Walker family knows that the journey north includes countless challenges. They first need to get away from the plantation, and the people there who enslave them. Auntie Lula and Uncle Solomon bring Ruth and Addy different clothes to wear on the night that the mother and daughter run away. Addy’s mother tells her, “When Master Stevens send out his dogs after us, it’s gonna be hard for them to track our smell if we got on somebody else’s clothes” (p. 23). Ruth expects the enslaver on the plantation to send dogs after them when he learns that they are missing. Ruth and Addy must not only run towards freedom, but run from dogs that chase them. Uncle Solomon warns Addy about another threat along the journey. He tells Addy, “…watch out for them Confederate soldiers. They dressed up in gray uniforms. They can be mean as snakes, and if they catch you, they gonna bring you back to slavery” (p. 29). During the American Civil War, the Confederate soldiers fight for the Confederacy, or the southern states, in order to uphold the institution of slavery. Addy and her mother know that they must avoid the armed soldiers throughout the south. Besides dogs and soldiers, nature also threatens the success of Addy’s journey. When Addy and Ruth reach a river, “They stood on the bank of the river for a few moments, afraid to enter the foaming, angry water. Sam had taught Addy how to swim, but this water looked dangerous - and [Ruth] didn’t know how to swim at all” (p. 35). As Addy and her mother make the journey north on foot, they face all manner of terrain along the way. Although Ruth cannot swim, she must enter and cross the water to reach the other side. At the river, Ruth and Addy, who must help her, risk drowning. Dogs, Confederate soldiers, and dangerous rivers all have the potential to derail an attempt to escape, and cause harm.

The North

Although Addy and her mother can be free in the north, they still face many hardships. When Addy and her mother arrive in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Addy asks her mother, “Momma, you think we should be waiting someplace else?…Maybe we should ask somebody what them signs say” (p. 51). Addy’s questions reveal some of the benefits she and her mother do not have at their disposal. First, Addy and her mother do not know anyone in Pennsylvania. They have no friends or family members there, they only trust, through the words of others, that there are people in Philadelphia who want to help. Addy and her mother wait for people they do not know to collect them. They wait at a designated location with nowhere else to go. Addy and her mother also cannot read, which makes them vulnerable in the new city. Later, Addy’s mother manages to find work, and a place for them to live. Life in Philadelphia is hard: “[Ruth] worked long hours in the shop…working just as hard as she had on the plantation. But back there, if Addy didn’t have a chore to do, she could find [Ruth] and sit with her while she worked. Not here…Mrs. Ford made it clear that Addy was not to be in the shop while [Ruth] was working” (p. 60). In the north, Ruth works long, hard hours. Ruth’s employer, Mrs. Ford, has strict rules for Ruth. Addy learns that in the city, Addy and her mother are still not equal citizens, and that Mrs. Ford wants Addy to be as invisible as possible to her customers. One day, Addy’s new friend Sarah takes Addy around the city. Addy sees a streetcar for the first time in her life, and wants to take a ride, but Sarah explains to Addy, “…they don’t let colored people ride on that streetcar…There is a few streetcars for colored people to ride on. But we can only ride on the outside platform, even if it’s raining or snowing. And they charge us colored folks the same fare they charge whites” (p. 63). Even in the north, white people and black people do not have the same experience in society. White people in the north still have full control of society, and prohibit black people from certain spaces. In Philadelphia, Addy and Ruth must still work hard while they live in an unequal society.

Finding Freedom centers around the Walker family’s escape from slavery in North Carolina, and their arrival as free people in Pennsylvania. The Walkers know that they do not want to be enslaved. They want to be free. However, the decision to flee their plantation in North Carolina remains complicated. The family thinks critically about what they must leave behind, and what they may face if their escape fails. They also must consider what awaits them along the journey north. They expect the plantation’s dogs to chase them, they expect Confederate soldiers throughout the south, and they expect the unforgiving challenges of the outdoors. Finally, the Walkers do not entertain false hopes about the north. If they do make the journey to Philadelphia, they know they will arrive illiterate and friendless in a city where they must forge their own living. Although Philadelphia offers freedom from slavery, the American city does not offer freedom from all racial injustices. As Addy and her family see, an attempt to escape slavery comes with many known as well as unknown risks. Ultimately, Addy and Ruth decide to flee the south. However, Finding Freedom illustrates some of the reasons why the choice is so difficult.

References

Porter, C. (2014). Finding Freedom. American Girl Publishing.