Isaac Dickerson to George L. White

This letter attests to the relationship between George White and Isaac Dickerson, one of the original Jubilee Singers, before the formation of the group. It also portrays the problematic power dynamics between white educators and African American students. Like others in the Jubilee Singers, Dickerson’s earliest memory was of the sale of his father to a slave trader in Richmond, Virginia. Dickerson remained with the Singers for years until the first European tour. On this tour, the Dean of Westminster Abbey offered to sponsor Dickerson’s education at the University of Edinburgh. Dickerson spent the remainder of his life in Britain, where he preached in the poor neighborhoods of London.