2.21 Legacies of Resistance in African American Art and Photography

In the 1800s, Black leaders like Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth used the new technology of photography to control their own image, counter racist stereotypes, and present themselves as citizens worthy of dignity and equal rights. Today, contemporary artists like Bisa Butler keep that tradition alive by drawing on Black aesthetic traditions to honor those leaders and connect African American history to Africa.

Analyzing visual sources is a core part of AP African American Studies, and this topic gives you practice treating photographs, portraits, and artwork as evidence of how leaders used images on purpose to make political points.

Black Leaders Used Photography to Claim Dignity

• African American leaders embraced photography to fight stereotypes and show themselves as people deserving of dignity, respect, and equal rights.
• Sojourner Truth sold carte-de-visite photographs of herself to fund abolitionist work, and her images centered Black women's leadership.
• Frederick Douglass was the most photographed man of the nineteenth century and used his portraits to project intellect and leadership.
• Photographs of formerly enslaved leaders like Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass mattered because they showed Black achievement and potential in freedom.
• Contemporary artists build on Black aesthetic traditions to blend historical, religious, and gender perspectives when they represent these leaders.
• The required Tubman photographs and Bisa Butler's quilted portrait show how visual representation of resistance continues across time.

Photography as Resistance

When photography spread in the nineteenth century, African American leaders saw its potential right away. Popular media was full of degrading caricatures of Black people, and photography gave leaders a way to control how they were seen.

By sitting for formal portraits, they presented themselves as dignified, intelligent, and respectable people who deserved equal rights. The choices were deliberate: serious expressions, elegant clothing, and composed poses all pushed back against stereotypes of Black inferiority. Then they shared these images to shape public opinion and support the fight for freedom.

Sojourner Truth's Carte-de-Visites

Sojourner Truth, a formerly enslaved woman who became an abolitionist and women's rights activist, used photography as a fundraising and activism tool.

• She sold carte-de-visite photographs of herself to raise money for the abolitionist cause.
• Her portraits projected strength, intelligence, and moral conviction, challenging racist portrayals of Black women.
• She also took part in speaking tours and recruited Black soldiers for the Union Army.

Her images showcased the centrality of Black women's leadership in the fight for freedom.

A carte-de-visite was a small, affordable photograph that became widely popular in the mid-nineteenth century. Because they were cheap and easy to share, they let activists like Truth get their image and message in front of many people.

Frederick Douglass's Photographic Legacy

Frederick Douglass, a formerly enslaved man who became one of the most influential abolitionists, was the most photographed man of the nineteenth century. He understood that photography could reshape the story people told about Black identity.

Douglass believed photographs offered visual proof of African American dignity and intelligence. He used his portraits to present himself as a statesman and intellectual and to challenge racist depictions. In his images he appeared well-dressed with a serious, composed look, refusing to play into stereotypes that cast Black people as unintelligent or subservient.

Photos of formerly enslaved African Americans like Douglass and Harriet Tubman were especially powerful because they demonstrated Black achievement and potential through freedom.

Required Sources

Photographs of Harriet Tubman Throughout Her Life

These required photographs span decades of Tubman's life, including a carte-de-visite portrait (1868-1869), a matte collodion print (1871-1876), and an albumen print (circa 1908).

Tubman was an abolitionist and conductor of the Underground Railroad, and these portraits give a rare look at a leader who repeatedly risked her life to lead enslaved people to freedom. The carte-de-visite format made her likeness widely accessible, spreading awareness of her work and the broader abolitionist cause. Seen together, the images show her across different stages of life and serve as lasting evidence of Black leadership and resistance, the same way photographs of Douglass demonstrated achievement in freedom.

I Go to Prepare a Place for You by Bisa Butler, 2021

This required source is a quilted portrait by contemporary artist Bisa Butler. Butler's quilted portraits draw from African American quilting traditions to bring together historical, religious, diasporic, and gender perspectives in a visual and tactile format.

In this work, Butler contextualizes Harriet Tubman's legacy, highlights the link between faith and leadership in Tubman's life, and draws recurring connections between African Americans and Africa. It is a clear example of how contemporary artists build on Black aesthetic traditions to preserve the memory of leaders' bravery and resistance.

Explaining the Purpose Behind Photographs and Portraits

Using Sources Effectively: When you get a photograph or portrait, do not just describe what you see. Explain the choices and their purpose. Ask:

• Who made or commissioned this image, and what message did they want it to send?
• What specific details (clothing, expression, pose, materials) push back against stereotypes or show dignity?
• How did the format help spread the message? For example, a carte-de-visite was cheap and easy to circulate, so it reached a wide audience.

Making Connections: Strong responses link a source to a bigger idea. Tie these images to resistance, citizenship, and Black leadership. For Tubman and Douglass, connect their portraits to the argument that formerly enslaved people demonstrated Black achievement and potential in freedom.

Continuity and Change: Use Bisa Butler's quilted portrait to show change and continuity over time. The technology and style are new, but the goal of using visual art to honor Black leaders and assert dignity continues from the nineteenth century into today.

Common Misconceptions

• Misconception: Photography was just for keeping memories.
  Actually: Photography was not just for keeping memories. For these leaders it was a deliberate political tool to control their own image and challenge racist portrayals.
• Misconception: Sojourner Truth gave her photographs away by accident.
  Actually: Sojourner Truth did not give her photographs away by accident. She sold her carte-de-visites specifically to raise money for the abolitionist cause.
• Misconception: Serious, unsmiling expressions meant the people were unhappy or that old photos always look that way.
  Actually: The serious, unsmiling expressions were a choice, not a sign that the people were unhappy or that old photos always look that way. The composed look pushed back against demeaning stereotypes.
• Misconception: Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald are required examples for this topic.
  Actually: Bisa Butler's quilt is a required example of this topic, but artists like Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald are useful outside examples of the same idea, not required content for this topic.
• Misconception: You only need to know who is in an image.
  Actually: This topic centers on visual depictions of leaders. Make sure you can explain why an image matters and what it argues, not only who is in it.

Related AP African American Studies Guides

• 2.9 Creating African American Culture
• 2.11 The Stono Rebellion and Fort Mose
• 2.5 Slave Auctions and the Domestic Slave Trade
• 2.8 The Social Construction of Race and the Reproduction of Status
• 2.12 Legacies of the Haitian Revolution
• 2.4 African Resistance on Slave Ships and the Antislavery Movement