Ona Judge was enslaved by George Washington. When Washington was elected president, Judge moved with him to Philadelphia. There, she took freedom into her own hands.
While Washington wasn’t looking, Judge fled. Within days advertisements were posted, demanding her capture. Washington was furious that she publicly disrespected him.
He had newspapers claim that Judge had run with “no provocation” and that all she’d experienced was kindness, but this was a lie.
Judge escaped to New Hampshire but Washington was ruthless. Technically, Judge was enslaved by Washington’s wife’s family, so he was responsible for reimbursing them for their “lost property.”
Washington was so lost in his own delusion, he convinced himself Judge had been seduced by a man and that was why she fled.
Washington had men track down Judge. Fed up, she told them to give Washington an ultimatum. She’d return, but ONLY if Washington promised her freedom after their deaths.
Washington shut down the offer. He tried recapturing her for years, but Judge continued to elude him. She died in 1848, freed by her own terms.
White supremacists have this delusional expectation that we should be grateful for their “kindness” even after all the horrific trauma they’ve caused us.
Judge knew that NOTHING is worth compromising our freedom.