Liberty Vernon
What we know
1882
Son of Missy Vernon and Robert Vernon.1
Patty Rollers
Late at night, after everyone was sung to sleep,
Liberty listened to his mother’s shushing moans.
Shhhh, honey, hush now. Don’t make a sound[1.
If you love your mamma, hush honey, hush.
His mother’s sleep voice would raise, harsher
and harsher on each sibilant shhhh.
His father would hold his mother tight,
his fingers smoothing her brow over
and over again, as if repeating a dance
step too long forgotten:
a memory too long sharp.
Connections
Portal
Sources
A popular abolitionish sketch showing a man in chains and asking "Am I not a man and a brother?"
Hope Town still holds the chains of the past.
Big Bertha
Missy Vernon
Katalin
Red Birch Pitkin
page revision: 10, last edited: 08 Jan 2012 07:09