Mum Bet had challenged the documents that proposed the principles in the Massachusetts State Constitution. She had become the first African American woman to file a lawsuit for the freedom in the state of Massachusetts, a lawsuit that she won. Mum new that all men were born equal, free, having certain natural, essential and unalienable rights. She argued that slavery had violated this very important sentiment. Her very important case helped bring end to slavery in Massachusetts and brought a more equal nation to African Americans.
“Mankind in a state of nature are equal, free, and independent of each other, and have a right to the undisturbed enjoyment of their lives, their liberty and property.” The very language is similar to that of the United States Declaration of Independence, and in the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780. Mum Bet found an attorney who helped draft her case, and she fought for her freedom. “The writ of replevin” was a document that ordered the release of Bet and after her release; she had become a domestic worker, and was able to buy her own house where she lived with her children. Her case determined if slavery was constitutional under the new Massachusetts Constitution.
She recognized the legal and moral importance of the words in the constitution and everyone witnessed what those words meant, She became the first woman to be set free under the Massachusetts constitution and she remains an inspiration to all of us who have the rights of freedom and safety in a world.