John the Conqueror

"...practitioners do this out of their reverence for or worship of the spirit (or in this case, John de Conquer, who also symbolizes ties to their enslaved ancestors through the land or 'soil of the South.')"

..."we not only find that the spirit of John de Conquer inhabits or 'possesses' a root, but he is also woven into a mojo bag that practitioners wear on their persons or store in a “secret place” of their house.

Frederick Douglass and Henry Bibb used the High John root to prevent whippings and protection from slaveholders.

[1][2] In an Arkansas slave narrative, ex-slave Marion Johnson used High John roots to conquer his enemies and receive protection from conjure.

In 2012, Rob Cleveland, an African-American stage performer, created a play about High John the Conqueror to demystify the folk spirit to audiences.

[13][14] Sometimes, John is an African prince (son of a king of Congo), said to have ridden a giant crow called "Old Familiar."

Joel Chandler Harris's Br'er Rabbit of the Uncle Remus stories is a similar archetype to that of High John the Conqueror, outdoing those who would do him in.

Zora Neale Hurston wrote of his adventures ("High John de Conquer") in her folklore collection The Sanctified Church.

In "High John De Conquer", Zora Neale Hurston reports that:[16] like King Arthur of England, he has served his people.

He waits to return when his people shall call him again ... High John de Conquer went back to Africa, but he left his power here, and placed his American dwelling in the root of a certain plant.

The purpose was to present the nation with the hope-building and the power of this inspiring figure during the darkest days of World War II.

If the news from overseas reads bad, if the nation inside seems like it is stuck in the Tar Baby, listen hard, and you will hear High John de Conquer treading on his singing-drum.