Civil War Part Four:The US Colored Troops and the Emancipation Proclamation

The Civil War began in 1861. At that time there were approximately four million African Americans living in the US. While there were almost half a million free African Americans at that time, most were still enslaved. 

The Emancipation Proclamation, proposed by President Lincoln, promised freedom, but only after the war. 

Many Black and white abolitionists, including Frederick Douglass, and New York Times Editor Horace Greeley, had long implored the President to free the enslaved. But, while Lincoln's personal view was that all people everywhere should be free, his main objective was the preservation of the Union.

In a letter to the President, Douglass famously proclaimed:

"Once let the Black  man get upon his person the brass letters ‘US’, let him get an eagle his button, a musket upon his shoulder, and bullets in his pockets and there is no power on earth that can deny that he has earned his right to citizenship in the United States".

But Lincoln would not allow Blacks to fight until it became clear

Civil War Part Three: Antietam, A Turning Point?

In 1862 the Civil War was in its second year, and victory was not a certainty for either side. Also, Britain and France were considering recognizing the Confederacy to preserve their sources of cotton from America.

President Lincoln was being urged to let Blacks fight to bolster Union Troops. But, Lincoln was said to be waiting for a major military victory, which would give him a stronger hand in freeing the slaves and allowing them to fight. His opportunity came at the Battle of Antietam later that same year, where nearly 23,000 Union Troops died in a single day. Antietam was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history.

But, Antietam was considered by Lincoln to be somewhat of a victory, albeit bittersweet because Union Army Commander, George B. McClellan failed to destroy Confederate General Robert E. Lee's army, and Lee was able to retreat. Antietam was then followed by Union losses at both Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, Virginia. 

With all of this, the President seized on the moment to make his argument for freeing the slaves, which he did in 1863 by executive order under his authority as Commander of all American Military Forces. In that same year, the US Colored Troops(USCT) were established. Those Blacks willing to fight were promised freedom. Lincoln was now able to announce his Emancipation Proclamation. 
The tide of the war would now turn.

Besides, McClellan who had always refused to consider allowing Blacks to fight, further straining relations with Lincoln, was relieved of his command.

The Hidden History of Slave Revolts in the Americas

It is ridiculous to suggest that any person who is held by force of arms, and subjected to the worst treatment humanly possible could be happy. For centuries those enslaved in America, the Caribbean, and around the world tried escape, revolt, and any other means they could to gain freedom.

A few years ago, while attending a workshop for the Thomas Day Education Project on Black History, I overhead a caucasian gentleman explaining to a workshop attendee how the slaves owned by his ancestors were "happy". This lie has been told in America for centuries,

The Civil War, Part Two: Confederate General Howell Cobb, In His Own Words

Who was Howell Cobb(1815-1868)of Georgia? He was one of the founders of the Confederacy, the speaker of the Georgia House, and later governor of Georgia in the early 1850's. In 1862, the second year of the Civil War, Cobb was a Brigadier General for the rebel Confederate(South) forces in northern Virginia. And, later that year, Cobb was promoted to the rank of Major General for the district of Georgia and Florida. But, some feel that Cobb's notoriety

The Civil War, Part One: "Oh, Give Us a Flag...", Songs from the Civil War

  

During the first two years of the Civil War, the song, "Oh, Give Us a Flag", reflected the feeling of many Blacks. Below is a link to a version of the song by the late Richie Havens. The song's author is unknown. 

But, before you hear the song, here's some brief   history.

In 1863 the Civil War was in it's second year, and President Lincoln

Civil War Intro: Blacks in the Civil War: A Series in Seven Parts

In August 2013, The Color of History I will begin posting an seven part series on the strong commitment, and brave contribution of Black/African American & Latino soldiers and citizens in the American Civil War.

Here are the topics to be covered, in the order in which they will be published.

1. Oh, Give Us a Flag!
2. The Howell Cobb statement
3. Antietam: A Turning Point?
4. The establishment of the Bureau of US Colored Troops(USCT)in      1863
5. Letter From a Soldier 
6. Spy vs Spy
7. The Siege of Petersburg, Va

Stop & Frisk: A History

Stop & Frisk, in New York and other American cities is just the latest version of the practice of white men with guns stopping black men because they viewed them as "suspicious". We know, full well by now, that during slavery armed "slavers" stopped black males wherever they found them, assuming them to be runaways, and therefore, subject to suspicion. 

But, even free black men and boys(free blacks numbered more than 400,000 in the 1700 & 1800's) could be stopped by anyone, and put in bondage, even if they had documents declaring them legally free. This practice continued after the Civil War, and the Emancipation Proclamation of 1865. 

In 1865/66, so called, Black Code laws were passed in southern states restricting the freedoms of blacks. This happened after the Civil War. Even so, these laws made free black men "suspicious", and subject to