ABSTRACT
One of the greatest forms of resistance to their condition during the Civil War was African American women's mere survival. Far too often the odds, physical as well as mental, were against them. Nevertheless, they were active agents in their own survival and in doing so, African American women insured the collective survival of the black community. They disrupted the southern plantation system by running away, being recalcitrant, engaging in work stoppages, striking and cooperating with Union troops and they attempted to keep families and homes intact. They often suffered great deprivation in the process.
