Harriet Ann Jacobs

Harriet Ann Jacobs was one of the most important female anti-slavery activists in the 19th century, an extraordinary woman who managed to escape slavery and become a prominent abolitionist speaker and reformer.

Jacobs is known for her autobiographical work, "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl," published in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent.

At a time when the vast majority of slaves were denied the right to education, it was one of the first books to explore the Black female slave's struggle against sexual harassment and abuse.

Due to the U.S. Civil War, the autobiographical account did not gain recognition until the late 20th century, when interest in minority and women writers exploded due to anti-racist and women's rights struggles in the U.S. and beyond.

Researchers later identified Harriet Jacobs, who died in 1897 at the age of 84, as the author.