The American Revolution : The First Successful Rebellion By A Colony Against Its European Parent Essay

In 1865, slavery was abolished, by the Thirteenth amendment. This Amendment brought humongous changes and a large number of problems. (Lecture 1) After the destruction of slavery, it left nearly four million African American with no property, little training, and few rights; which made the definition of freedom for African Americans the central question on the nation’s agenda. The big question of the time period was, “what was freedom for African Americans?” (Give me liberty! An American 550)

The American Revolution resonated with all classes of society, as it stood to divide a nation’s loyalties and recreate the existing fabric of society. During the 1770s to mid 1780s, no group living in the British American colonies was left unaffected. For blacks enslaved in America, the war presented the fleeting possibility of freedom in a nation that was still dependent on an economic structure of oppression and bondage. For those blacks that were free, they chose their alliances wisely in hopes of gaining economic opportunities and improving their status in the American colonies. The American Negroes, whether free or enslaved, could be found on either side of the battlefront. They took on many different roles, some fighting on the

Enlightenment had a significant effect on African Americans during the revolutionary era due to the nature of John Locke’s arguments. Consequently, when these arguments were made the African Americans listened, understood, and interpreted very well that the British settlers were demanding liberty for themselves while contradictorily denying the slaves of their basic human rights. In addition to the African Americans understanding said arguments, there were Caucasian people who believed that blacks were entitled to share these basic human rights as well. Therefore, it gave African Americans hope that there would soon be a change in favor of their civil rights as well as the courage to protest, litigate, escape, and or fight against the powers

The years of 1763-1765 were truly defining moments for colonist of the colonies, soon to become the United States of America. ‘’War! War! This is the only way!” American Colonist shouted,as they took to the streets proclaiming defiance of British rule. “We as a people shall fight for our freedom and have victory.No more shall we continue to let others control our countries and give our money to a monarch who has no concern for our right’s, dedication that was put forth to help fight and respect us as loyal subjects.We must fight for our freedom!” When American colonist waged war it proved to be the only way for the colonies to become free from Britian. In turn, the colonist were justified in breaking away from England because of: The

Then change in the 1730’s a religious group called the Quakers would inspire the Great Awakening which abolished slavery and demanded that slave holders across the colonies to do the same. That they would start to happen after the American Revolution by 1820’s and the north was on a path to end slavery for good and allowed blacks to live free in the north for the first time in American history, but that did not change for the south. The south offering liberties to white plantation owners have offered a few rights to blacks they would develop the ⅗ compromise that would determine how slaves would be counted as far as tax and legislative representation. While slavery started to get essentially worse in the southern states. It seems that the American Revolution did not do anything for the Africans for “freedom” besides what they did in the northern states by 1804. Every northern state either abolished slavery or passed a law to eliminate it

African American’s first legal sight of freedom came in 1799 with the Gradual Emancipation of slaves that were born on or after 1799. Many whites against slavery helped with their efforts in bring the Gradual Emancipation’s approval. The Quakers were the first to help the slaves fight for freedom. The New York Manumission Society contributed the most for the emancipation of slaves, but let’s not give all the credit to the whites. Black efforts undeniably helped in the process of gradually abolishing slavery as well.

The Revolutionary War was fought on principles of liberty, freedom, and justice for all - but when the dust had settled, and the Constitution finally agreed upon, the American people still owned slaves. The right to own other people was a cornerstone of American culture, and a major driver of its economy - it was unlikely to simple go away. Ironically, patriots would use a great deal of anti-slavery rhetoric to illustrate their struggle against the British, but in the aftermath of revolution, it became clear that “all men” did not include black men. Slavery, as it is properly understood, is a terrible institution that relies on oppression. Oftentimes, it used brutality and torture to keep productivity high. Such an oppressive system invites

Slavery existed since the beginning of the United States’s time but was practiced long before in Western Africa. Slaves were important to the country’s economy and agriculture since they were based off of slave trade and plantations they worked in. After a few years, slavery demands and its population declined but after the invention of the cotton gin, demands went up again. They had to work harder than before and more Africans were sold off to white plantation owners. Although slaves had hard daily lives, were mistreated, and discriminated, they still refused to believe that there was no chance for them and instead rebelled for their freedom.

This undeniable reality of the racial constraints on the concept of equality naturally leads us to question whether the Revolution Era had a “truly revolutionary” effect on anyone except for the white man. When discussing the concept of equality in part with the Revolutionary Era, we should start with identifying the various demographics that were meant to be affected by this concept. Africans are arguably the most affected demographic by the revolutionary era. The most significant changes of where they sit on the societal totem pole happen in the northern colonies, as America a Narrative History states, after achieving independence all the states except Georgia stopped the trafficking of slaves; only for South Carolina to re-open their slave trade in 1803. However, we should also

The American revolution was an inspiration to black people they hope the words of the patriots would apply equally to them, but they were wrong there was 700,000 slaves in the united states at its birth they had no rights and no power yet they determined hold america to its ideals there struggle would last for generation. Chapel massachusetts at the time before the time of america country this was slave country slavery was legal here just as it was in each of the 13 colonies, but the revolution brought new laws to this land one slave began to test these laws her name was Macbeth she heard talk about a new constitution that said all men were free so Mambeth decided to act.

The American Revolution is defined as the political turbulence that took place towards the end of eighteenth century when thirteen colonies in America united to attain freedom from the British Empire (Clifford, 2005). The union of the thirteen colonies is now known as the United States of America. According to Clifford (2005), the American Revolution occurred because of a series of political, intellectual, and social transformations in the American government and society, which is known as the American Enlightenment. The American Revolution created a variety of opportunities for the American slaves to attain freedom (Waldstreicher, 2004). Slaves were provided with an opportunity to escape their thralldom by being recruited

Following the American Revolution (1775-1781), a new political movement called Republicanism took place. Republicanism was based on the ideology of liberty and equality, where the territory was no longer ruled by monarchy or aristocracy. The people were at the core of the Republicanism. The problem was finding balance within the social order of the population and their properties. African Americans used this movement as the reason why they should be treated as equal to others and have the same rights. How could slavery match with the concept of liberty? The concept of freedom, while enslaving others, was in fact a contradiction. While northern states started to prohibit slavery, the feeling of racism and diversity still persisted. Contrarily,

“Is there a single trait of resemblance between those few towns and a great and growing people spread over a vast quarter of the globe, separated by a mighty ocean?” This question posed by Edmund Burke was in the hearts of nearly every colonist before the colonies gained their independence from Britain. The colonists’ heritage was largely British, as was their outlook on a great array of subjects; however, the position and prejudices they held concerning their independence were comprised entirely from American ingenuity. This identity crisis of these “British Americans” played an enormous role in the colonists’ battle for independence, and paved the road to revolution.

The 1700’s marked the boom of the slave trade. African-Americans could barely get the law to see them as people, let alone give them the right to vote. The Declaration of Independence, signed in 1776, was a document that embraced the principle of equality for all men. This principle would prove to be elusive to African-Americans. In 1789, the U.S. Constitution would declare black slaves be counted as 3/5s of a person in determining representation and therefore ineligible to vote. Slavery continued along with the mistreatment of the African-American people. The 1700’s brought thousands of African-Americans to the United States with no right to vote and no representation, the fundamental proposition for the revolt against King George III. An irony that would not go unnoticed decades and centuries later.

The United States of America is known for its claims of democracy, equality, and freedom for all of it’s citizens. These claims are the foundation of America’s independence and essentially its entire history. But “claims” are simply all they were in history. While many achieved equal democracy and freedom, the African-American population of the US was exempt from these “inalienable rights” and heavily oppressed by society. The cruelty of slavery and oppression as a whole reached its peak in the 19th century bringing upon the abolitionist movement, which eventually aided in the historic removal of slavery and the continued fight for equal right of citizenship for African-Americans. Of the many abolitionists who fought for