Harriet Jacobs (1813-1897) was an African-American abolitionist, author, and relief worker. As a runaway slave, Jacobs had spent seven years hiding in a crawlspace in North Carolina; after escaping to New York she wrote Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl(1861). The book was initially published by the white abolitionist Lydia Marie Child, and until the 1980's it had been accepted as a work of fiction. Following the publication of the book Jacobs worked as an abolitionist, a relief worker among Black Civil War refugees, and as an educator in the Post Civil-War south.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl chronicles the harrowing experiences of Harriet Jacobs as a slave in mid-1800 North Carolina. This narrative is unique in its frank depictions of emotional and sexual abuse at the hands of a ruthless master; yet, it is an inspiring story of family and eventual freedom.