Powerful, sacred songs that derived from the heart of the antebellum enslaved African were melodic outflowing of religious expression, passion, and the hope to be free. Negro spirituals, as originated in America, tell of sorrow, trials and tribulations, secrecy and hiding, and hope for a sense of community.
Join retired middle school Language Arts teacher Connie Martin as she explains the connections of Plantation songs, or Negro Spirituals with meanings and interpretations of lyrics of some songs used in regions of the South that signaled a multiple of signs and tips that aided enslaved fugitives to find freedom. Presented in partnership with the Illinois Humanities “Road Scholar” Speakers Bureau.