Subsequently, the slave was given, under the eye, and the gun, of his master, Congo Square, and the Bible — or, in other words, and under these conditions,.the slave began the formation of the black church, and it is within this unprecedented tabernacle that black English began to be formed.
Baldwin’s historical account of Black English’s formation complements Heller’s analysis of AAVE as identity/agency in Bambara—both center vernaculars as purposeful, not deficient.