19thnews on Instagram: "Pauline M. Copes-Johnson, great-great-grandniece of Harriet Tubman, died on December 8. She dedicated her life to preserving Tubman…"
Pauline M. Copes-Johnson, great-great-grandniece of Harriet Tubman, died on December 8. She dedicated her life to preserving Tubman’s legacy and was described as her oldest living descendant in Auburn, New York. Johnson was 98 at the time of her death. “Mother Johnson was a treasured matriarch, a keeper of history, and a living witness to the legacy of faith, freedom, and resilience that she carried with dignity and grace,” the Harriet Tubman Memorial AME Zion Church wrote on Facebook in a post announcing her death. Johnson held several leadership positions at the church and frequently played piano during Sunday services. Born in Auburn — the same city where Tubman remained until her death — Johnson spent decades of her life tirelessly educating the world about her great aunt. Most notably, she was at the forefront of the national effort to feature Tubman’s likeness on the $20 bill in place of former President Andrew Jackson, who notoriously owned about 150 enslaved people by the end of his presidency. She was a strong proponent for the establishment of the Harriet Tubman National Historic Park and frequently spent time at the late abolitionist’s home, where she was a docent. Johnson conducted speaking tours about Tubman as well, visiting schools and local community centers in different states.Over the course of her life, Johnson made history herself. She became the first African-American telephone operator in Cayuga County after being hired by the New York Telephone Company. It was through this position that she discovered the NAACP, another cause to which she dedicated her time. During her life, the Auburn branch of the NAACP awarded Johnson its Martin Luther King Jr. Millennium Award. She was later inducted into the NAACP Hall of Fame and, in 2017, the New York state Senate named her as one of its “Women of Distinction.”For centuries, Tubman’s life has been eulogized and commemorated through holidays, art displays and historical sites. Her enduring legacy is in part due to the work of her descendants like Johnson, whose own impact is now being remembered in her hometown.✍️: Lauren Nutall, reporting fellow📸: Kevin Rivoli/AP