Sojourner Truth Sojourner Truth (c. 1797-1883) is perhaps the most famous black woman in American history, but only recently have historians begun to discover new "truths" about her. A slave for nearly thirty years, the illiterate Truth gained fame as an itinerant minister and outspoken advocate for African Americans and women. Even today Truth endures as a symbolic heroine who championed the rights of all people, and her image can be found on T-shirts, buttons, calendars, and a United States postage stamp issued in 1986. Truth's origins hardly suggested that she would become a national icon. Born Isabella