Remembering Crispus Attucks and the forgotten black soldiers of the American Revolution
OPINION - Memorial Day is just as important to African-Americans as it is to any other group. Perhaps it is even more special, when we remember the special, and often forgotten sacrifices, our ancestors made...
The British strategically used this fear, and Lord Dunmore, the British governor of Virginia, issued a proclamation promising freedom to slaves of rebels that would fight for the British. Subsequently, an “Ethiopian” brigade of about 300 fought at the Battle of Great Bridge in Virginia on December 9, 1775 for the British. Colonel Tye and Boston King are among the best known soldiers who fought for the British, or the Loyalists.
Tye reportedly commanded the Black Brigade in New York and New Jersey, where he is credited with capturing an American captain. Although he would die in the war in 1780, his impact was felt. King, who joined the British in Charleston, would fare much better and ended up surviving the war as a free man and relocating to Nova Scotia before helping to found Freetown, Sierra Leone.
On the Patriot side, even before some of the restrictions barring black military participation were eased, an estimated five percent of American soldiers who fought on behalf of the colonists at the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775 were black.
In fact, Salem Poor and Peter Salem distinguished themselves there. Poor, who has appeared on a U.S. postage stamp, was even commended for his many acts of bravery at the time. Salem, who was granted his freedom to fight, also fought in several battles at Saratoga, Concord and Stony Point.
Military service as a path to freedom
Faced with the decimated ranks of white men lost due to disease (largely small pox), General Washington permitted free black men with prior military experience to enlist in January 1776; that condition was extended to all free black men a year later. Even when offered monetary compensation, most of the Southern colonies refused to let blacks participate. But black military serviceman continued to prove critical to victory.
Fighting with the permission of his slave master, James Armistead (later known as James Armistead Lafayette) from New Kent, Virginia served as a double agent and provided the critical information needed to create a blockade at Yorktown, Virginia for the decisive Battle of Yorktown, which resulted in the British surrender on October 19, 1781. For his efforts, he received his freedom and lived out his days as a farmer in Virginia.
Talk of freedom was very much on the minds of those of African descent who joined either cause. As the Patriots argued that the British infringed upon their rights and spoke of themselves as being enslaved, there were high hopes that white colonists would make the correlation to the condition of those of African descent in America, and would compassionately abolish slavery in the new nation. Sadly, they did not; but, the bravery of black men in particular during the American Revolution is credited as a factor in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island making moves to abolish slavery earlier than most states.
Plus, after the American Revolution was won, anti-slavery efforts kicked into high gear in the new America.
Our history as revolutionaries, remembered
While his actions are less lauded today by some, Crispus Attucks remains an important conduit to the events that led to the establishment of the United States of America. In a time when black men were afforded few rights, his bold decision to stand strong against armed British soldiers was essential to moving the Patriots closer to the American Revolution. As war waged on, his spirit multiplied among blacks who, even when enslaved, continued to serve bravely in the American military.
That revolutionary craving for freedom, and the willingness to fight for it, is still burning among African-Americans centuries later. From the Civil Rights Movement, to the power of our protests today, fighting for what is right and good is a spark that remains kindled in us from the time the first African-Americans made their military sacrifices for American ideals.
Thus, Memorial Day is just as important to blacks as it is to any other group. Perhaps it is even more special, when we remember the often-forgotten sacrifices our ancestors made.
Follow Ronda Racha Penrice on Twitter at @RondaRacha.
