索杰纳·特鲁斯从出生起就被奴役，成为废奴、女权和禁酒的流行代言人。她从一开始就是一位历史创造者。她是第一位在法庭上赢得针对白人男子的诉讼的黑人女性，在离家出走后获得了儿子的监护权。她成为当时最著名的人物之一。

她著名的“我不是一个女人吗？”的演讲有好几种变体，因为索乔纳·特鲁斯本人并没有把它写下来；演讲稿的所有副本充其量都来自二手资料。它于1851年5月29日在俄亥俄州阿克伦举行的妇女大会上发表，并于1851年6月21日在《反奴隶制号角》上首次发表。

《真理》的公众生活和言论中有许多经久不衰的引语。

精选旅居者真理语录

“我不是一个女人吗？”

“关于有色人种男子获得权利的问题引起了很大的骚动，但关于有色人种妇女的问题却一句话也没有；如果有色人种男子获得了他们的权利，而不是有色人种妇女获得了他们的权利，你会看到有色人种男子将成为妇女的主人，这将和以前一样糟糕。因此，我支持在事情发生时继续进行这件事；因为如果我们直到现在，它还需要很长一段时间才能恢复。”（平等权利公约，1867年，纽约）

“是心灵造就了身体。”

“如果上帝创造的第一个女人足够坚强，能够独自把世界翻过来，那么这些女人应该能够一起把世界翻过来，重新把世界翻过来！现在他们要求这样做，男人们最好让他们这样做。”

“真理燃烧错误。”

“你的基督从哪里来？从上帝和一个女人那里来！男人与他毫无关系。”

“没有人性的宗教是可怜的人类。”

两个版本，一次演讲

《真理》最著名的演讲《我不是女人吗》是以一种与她最初演讲截然不同的版本在历史上流传下来的。在美国内战期间，她的言论重新受到欢迎，并于1863年由弗朗西斯·达纳·巴克·盖奇（Frances Dana Barker Gage）再版。这个版本被“翻译”成南方被奴役人民的陈规定型方言，而真相本身在纽约长大，第一语言是荷兰语。盖奇还美化了特鲁斯的原话，夸大了自己的主张（例如，声称特鲁斯有十三个孩子，而真正的特鲁斯有五个孩子）。

盖奇的版本包括一个取景装置，描绘了一个敌对的人群，他们被真理近乎奇迹般的演讲所征服。它还将旁观者所说的“普通”英语与盖奇版本的真理的重方言进行了对比：

Dat man ober dar say dat womin needs to be helped into carriages, and lifted ober ditches, and to hab de best place everywhar. Nobody eber helps me into carriages, or ober mud-puddles, or gibs me any best place!" And raising herself to her full height, and her voice to a pitch like rolling thunders, she asked "And a'n't I a woman? Look at me! Look at me! Look at my arm! (and she bared her right arm to the shoulder, showing her tremendous muscular power). I have ploughed, and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And a'n't I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man—when I could get it—and bear de lash a well! And a'n't I a woman? I have borne thirteen chilern, and seen 'em mos' all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none but Jesus heard me! And a'n't I a woman?   In contrast, the original transcription, written down by Marius Robinson (who attended the convention where Truth spoke), depicts Truth as speaking standard American English, without markers of an accent or dialect. The same passage reads: I want to say a few words about this matter. I am a woman's rights. I have as much muscle as any man, and can do as much work as any man. I have plowed and reaped and husked and chopped and mowed, and can any man do more than that? I have heard much about the sexes being equal. I can carry as much as any man, and can eat as much too, if I can get it. I am as strong as any man that is now. As for intellect, all I can say is, if a woman have a pint, and a man a quart—why can't she have her little pint full? You need not be afraid to give us our rights for fear we will take too much,—for we can't take more than our pint'll hold. The poor men seems to be all in confusion, and don't know what to do. Why children, if you have woman's rights, give it to her and you will feel better. You will have your own rights, and they won't be so much trouble. I can't read, but I can hear. I have heard the Bible and have learned that Eve caused man to sin. Well, if woman upset the world, do give her a chance to set it right side up again.

来源

• 《妇女选举权史》，伊丽莎白·卡迪·斯坦顿、苏珊·B·安东尼和玛蒂尔达·乔斯琳·盖奇主编，第二版，纽约州罗切斯特：1889年。
• 《旅居者真相：奴隶、先知、传说》。纽约大学出版社，1995年。