Once A Slave: The Slaves View of Slavery

Once A Slave: The Slaves' View of Slavery by Stanley Feldstein
First Printing: 1970 by William Morrow and Company

I found this book and many others on the subject on a ten-cent shelf at a local used bookstore. It was clear that they had all come from the same home, and it was obvious by their wear that they were well loved. Intrigued by the little collection, I scooped them up and brought them home. This is the first in the set, and I can tell you that I won't be parting with it anytime soon.

Once a Slave: The Slaves' View of Slavery is a compilation of notes, journal entries, and interviews from slaves in America. The book is broken up into seven parts, with each one analyzing different aspects of life as a slave. In particular, this book defines the manners in which slave owners would take away a man's personhood.  The people were treated exactly the same as one would treat cattle. They were sold in a stockyard, worked under the whip, and forced into breeding programs. Their families were sold away and they lived in constant terror. Their masters' kept a close eye on them to ensure that they would not fight back. They were brainwashed into believing that the master's house was the best place for them- that anyone else would treat them even worse. This made the people terrified of being sold by their master, forcing them to tow the line. All manners of violence were used to make an example of anyone who rebelled. This particular passage describing life on a slave ship still makes me nauseous:

"Not even the little children were spared the terrors of the voyage. The Weldons tell of a child of nine months being flogged for refusing to eat. This inducement failing, the captain of the ship then ordered the child placed feet first into a pot of boiling water. When this resulted in nothing more than the dissolving of the skin and nails, he again was flogged. As the child continued his refusal, a piece of mango-wood weighing fourteen pounds was tied to his neck as punishment. All else failing, the captain took him and dropped him from his arms upon the deck, and in a few moments the child was dead. At that point the captain called the mother to heave the child's body overboard, and then beat her for her refusal until she was forced to take it to the ship's side, 'where with her head averted that she might not see it, she dropped it overboard.'"(pg. 37)

It's hard to believe that such evil was tolerated in our country, and yet there it is. It is our greatest shame, and it should not be forgotten. Books like this bear witness to these tragedies. They allow these people to tell their story and have it continue on in the memories of their readers. 

The Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5
The importance of this book cannot be stressed enough. I appreciate that Stanley Feldstein portrayed the injustice of slavery in a matter-of-fact way. He held nothing back, and he brought these suffering people together into one voice. My only complaint is my wish that the accounts from the slaves would have been more complete instead of being chopped into smaller quotes. However, I understand that the length of the book would have suffered for it. The stories of the people in this book will stay with me forever. I often think of that little boy with the boiled feet, and I'm overwhelmed with sorrow. If only justice had been swift enough to save them all.

Favorite Quote:
"Can the American people, who at this very hour are pouring out their blood in defense of their country's liberty, offering up as a sacrifice on the battle field their promising young men, to preserve their land and hearthstones from English oppression [War of 1812]; can they, will they, continue to hunt the poor African slave from their soil because he desires that same liberty, so dear to the heart of every American citizen? Will they not blot out from their fair escutchen the foul stain which slavery has cast upon it? Will they not remember the Southern bondman, in whom the love of freedom is as inherent as in themselves; and will they not, when contending for equal rights, use their mighty forces 'to break every yoke, and let the oppressed go free'? God grant that it may be so!"- former slave Austin Steward, page 150

Once a Slave: The Slaves' View of Slavery is out of print. 

It can only be obtained through a used bookseller.