Tera W. Hunter | Bound in Wedlock: Slave and Free Black Marriage in the Nineteenth Century
The Baton Foundation, Inc., in partnership with the Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History, will host Tera W. Hunter, a professor of history and African American Studies at Princeton University. Dr. Hunter will give a lecture and sign copies of her book "Bound in Wedlock: Slave and Free Black Marriage in the Nineteenth Century." This program is free and open to the public.
About the Book
Americans have long viewed marriage between a white man and a white woman as a sacred union. But marriages between African Americans have seldom been treated with the same reverence. This discriminatory legacy traces back to centuries of slavery, when the overwhelming majority of black married couples were bound in servitude as well as wedlock. Though their unions were not legally recognized, slaves often married, fully aware that their marital bonds would be sustained or nullified according to the whims of their masters.
"Bound in Wedlock" is the first comprehensive history of African American marriage in the nineteenth century. Drawing from plantation records, legal documents, and personal family documents, it reveals the many ways enslaved couples upended white Christian ideas of marriage.
If you are unable to attend this event, you may pre-order a signed copy below.
About the Author
Dr. Tera W. Hunter is Professor of History and African American Studies at Princeton University. She is a scholar of labor, gender, race, and Southern history. Professor Hunter is a native of Miami, Florida, where she attended public schools. She received a B.A. degree from Duke University and a Ph.D. from Yale University.
