“OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE” - Mary Ellen Pleasant

There’s an old saying that I learned from my Personal Development Studies. It says,”Change your plan, but not your goal.” Whenever I think about The Underground Railroad, my mind almost instantly thinks of Harriet Tubman. Well, by way of my research of Black History, I have learned about another courageous black female who was actively involved in The Underground Railroad. Although some people say that Mary Ellen Pleasant was born in 1812, she adamantly stated that she was born on August 19, 1814 . Furthermore, because of her light skin complexion[ and white associates /friends ], Mary Ellen Pleasant was able to “PASS” as being “WHITE!” She ended up marrying a man named James Smith, a wealthy flour contractor and plantation owner who had freed his slaves and was also able to “PASS as WHITE!” She and her husband worked together on the Underground Railroad until his death. Also to my surprise, I learned that Mary Pleasant & Harriet Tubman were reportedly good friends of John Brown( the White Abolitionist who unsuccessfully led the raid on Harper’s Ferry. It was said that if Harriet Tubman wasn’t ill at the time,she would have died or been captured at Harper’s Ferry). Beginning in the 1860s, Mary Ellen Pleasant was called the "Mother of Civil Rights in California" for her work as an abolitionist. In addition to being an Abolitionist, Mary Pleasant was also an entrepreneur, financier, and real-estate magnate[ She was arguably the first self-made millionaire of African-American heritage, preceding Madam C. J. Walker ]. In closing, I think BLACK PEOPLE would do well to go back and study( and see ) how Mary Ellen Pleasant repeatedly had to change her “PLANS,”but she NEVER changed her “GOAL” of helping Negroes escape to freedom!