The Black Community Essay

When the Civil War began in 1861, the issue of slavery was not the central focus of the war effort on the side of the Union. While it was still important to many in the North, the main war aim of the Union side was to preserve the Union and make sure it remained intact. As the war dragged on and more soldiers died on both sides, Lincoln realized he would need to entirely cripple the already weak Confederate economy, and he did this by making the Emancipation Proclamation, which became effective January 1, 1863. This executive order stated that all slaves in states currently in open rebellion against the United States were free from slavery. By doing this, he caused African Americans in slave states to cross into Union territory and into

    Since the beginning of American history, the black race has been the inferior race during times of slavery and times of freedom for black people. They have had to fight to be seen as legitimate first-class citizens, whether that be through slave uprisings in the pre-civil war era, the civil rights movement in the mid-1900’s, or the Black Lives Matter campaign that was started in 2013. Though not everyone has lived an easy life, and not everyone will, the people who have had it the hardest were the enslaved African-Americans in the early stages of our country.

Whites have always considered themselves superior to blacks, no matter if they were slave owners or not. Blacks were considered lower than humans, making them a main target of oppression of whites. So even when a small group of blacks were given their freedom, they weren’t truly liberated from the chains of slavery and oppression. Blacks were freed in the early 1800s, giving a limited amount of blacks the freedom they deserved. These blacks were usually rural, uneducated, and unskilled domestic servants who had to work hard to survive in the society that shunned them. Free blacks were still given restrictions and laws because of their status in society. In the early 1830s, a law in Virginia was made to prohibit all blacks from getting their education. They even took it to the level where free blacks who went out of state to educate themselves were not able to come back and return to their own state. The worst restriction was that blacks could not testify in court. When a slave owner claimed that a free black was their slave, they could not defend themselves, and would have to conform back to their slavery. Despite the terrible treatment given to blacks, some rose above the oppression and became successful, therefore achieving their goals and potentials of being a free black man, leaving a huge impact on society in the 1800s.

This country is known for two horrific acts against mankind, the inhumane treatment of the American Indians and the enslavement of African-Americans. Both groups are still affected today and this essay will look at how White Americans are still reaping benefits today. The number of slaves brought to North America, South America, and the Caribbean was off the wall as between 1619 and the end of slavery approximately 9.6 and 10.8 were forcibly brought over from Africa (Mintz, 2009). The numbers rose from 36,000 a year in the early 1700s to almost 80,000 a year during the 1780s, the peak of the tragic importation (Mintz, 2009). Most were not brought to the United States, but by 1825 the United States and a quarter of the slaves because the death rate was much higher in other areas of the Americas (Mintz, 2009). The slaves in this country were more removed from their African roots as by 1850, most of the slaves in the Caribbean were born in Africa where those in the United States had been there for several generations (Mintz, 2009). Many of their traditions and customs were taken away or forgotten. Maybe this is why it has taken African-Americans in this country longer to discover their roots than those of other areas.

There is a negative stigma against the Black Community as a whole embedded into the American penal system. Stories about police officers shooting young, unarmed black men flood television screens and social media timelines while young black boys are left to wonder if they are next, left to wonder if they will be the next news headline or trending hashtag. In A Question of Freedom, a young Dwayne Betts faces the injustices of prison as a young, black male who was treated as an adult in the eyes of the law. He is forced to grow up in jail and was stripped of his childhood the minute he committed a crime. Black men are not always given a fair chance but Betts uses his time both behind bars and within the years to follow them in order to educate himself as well as others on the realities of life in prison as a growing boy.

The United States developed the official poverty measures in 1960. It was developed by President Lyndon B. Johnson, who had declared a war on poverty during the Civil Rights era. (The Path of Power- The years of Lyndon B. Johnson, (Caro, 16). The poverty rate of African Americans has been declining for many years. The Census Bureau releases two reports every year that describe who is poor in the United States based on cash resources. There is also the supplemental poverty measure (SPM) which takes account for the cash resources and non cash benefits from government programs aimed at low income families. (www.Census.gov/People and household). In 2012 there were over 46.5 million people in poverty and of those numbers 10 million were African

The treatment of slaves varied in the South. Some people treated their slaves pretty fairly. Unfortunately,

According to Ira Berlin's essay "The role of African-Americans in the abolition of slavery," despite the role of slavery in causing the American Civil War, Northerners and Southerners alike did not envision slaves having a viable role in fighting for their freedom. However, as the war progressed, it became increasingly clear that slaves could play a role in the conflict to help the Northern side. The Emancipation Proclamation and the subsequent conscription of African-Americans had a very practical purpose: it demonstrated that the Union was on the 'side' of enslaved blacks and enabled African-Americans to prove their readiness to become citizens. At first there was tremendous opposition to these policies: merely because people supported the Union did not mean they believed in equality of the races. Even in the North, there was initial resistance to returning slaves to their owners after war was declared. Anti-slavery congressmen took great passed a resolution declaring it 'no part of the duty of the soldiers of the United States to capture and return fugitive slaves" only with great effort (Berlin et al 428). As black Americans, including escaped slaves began to play a more and more critical role in the war effort and eventually, the abolitionist view began to become more accepted. Escaped and freed slaves served in military camps as cooks, nurses, laundresses and labor, and bridged the social

Artwork has been an imperative part of Black culture, and many artist share their inspirations coming from African origins. From the beginning of slave societies to present day, African America artwork has contributed to large parts of United States artistic collection. Beginning in the early 1600 to 1800 “black art took the form of small drums, quilts, wrought-iron figures and ceramic vessels in the southern United States. These artifacts have similarities with comparable crafts in West and Central Africa.” The significance of the

The situation of the black american during this period was one of change. In the years leading up to the civil war, the southern states were dominated by comically high amount of slaves, with almost 90% of African Americans in the United States being in chains. The abolition movement was growing though, and gaining a large backing. Come 1861, the cries for abolition were deafening, and the South seceded, firing the first shots of the civil war on Ft. Sumter.Lincoln signed the Emancipation Procolamtion in 1863, freeing all slaves except in the border states, to punish the South and cement Slavery as a driving force behind the war. The civil war

Leaders such as, Fredrick Douglass, a man who was a slave himself but escaped to the north for his freedom aided in the support of abolition. Many people believed slavery was a sin, others however loved the idea of having free labor. When Abraham Lincoln came into office as president his main goal was to emancipate all slavery in the United States. Slavery lasted until the north could no longer agree with the decisions of the south, which erupted causing an up roar known as the American Civil War (1861-1865). Mid-way though the war Lincoln devised the Emancipation Proclamation which is the end of all slavery in the United States (history.com). Once slaves were no longer entitled to their owners, many enlisted into the Union Army, resulting in the North defeating the south ending slavery forever. “140,500 freed slaves and 38,500 free blacks served in the Union Army” (Mintz). The war which lasted four years was just a stepping stone in ratifying the country, creating a more integrated

Blacks however always got the short end of the stick. Slavery has never been more important to any other country than the United States. The controversy against black and white has been around for centuries. White as the higher class. Black as the lower class. But, how this controversy affected the black people the North America in 1619. The colonists were in need of labor which pushed them to withhold slaves. Whites began to believe blacks were not their equals and made it known. “In North America, slavery became widespread substitute for paid labor. At the same time, whites came to believe that blacks were not their equals”(Zinn 23). Then on, blacks would suffer from mistreatment for 350 years in society from the americans. They would hold slaves auctions selling off black women, men, and children. In transport the slaves were chained and were forced to walk from Africa to the coast, many died on these walks. Aboard the slaves ships they were put in boxes in the dark as small as coffins. “Some died for lack of air in the crowded, dirty cargo holds of the ships. Others jumped overboard to end their suffering”(Zinn 31). Over a third of the slaves died at sea. In the 1800’s there were around 10 million black slaves brought into America. Africa had lost about 50 million humans to slavery. Not all black people were slaves some were servants. Some white people were servants too, but had very different treatment than the black servants. Example, when white servants tried to escape they would get a very light punishment, whereas a black servant would experience a lot harsher punishment. Starting in 1663, black and white servants and slaves began to fight for their freedom. They were given some benefits, but the struggle continued. “ A web of historical threads trapped blacks in American slavery. These threads were the desperation of the starving settlers, the helplessness of Africans torn from their homeland, the

Throughout history, many different minority groups have been treated unfairly. Although African Americans, Latino Americans, Native Americans, and Asian Americans are all minorities, they are similar in the ways of getting treated negatively, but they differ significantly. While some experience different situations in their early histories, stereotypes, discrimination, and other important issues. Some of these minority groups have these issues similar or worse than others.

In the American South, slaves struggled to have happy lives growing up and being treated nicely. These things didn’t respect people and it lasted for a very long time.

Before I even realized what separated me from the average female society hit me with the harsh realities of how hard my life would be based primarily on the color of my skin and not the “content of my character”. I am an African American female on paper and all of the require documents that my parents signed from birth certificate to my recent driver’s license. However, because the pigment of my skin didn’t look as though the average stereotypical black female critics grew skeptical as if I was portraying something I was not. The fact is I myself am not the average ‘mixed race’ my father is and my mother is of high complexion which resulted in my appearance to be of ‘mixed raced’ as well. Just because the equality of my blackness didn’t exude from my skin, harassment from certain individuals grew to be intolerable. My mentality or more so society convinced me I belong in the same category on standardized testing known and labeled as other. Other because I had no spot the blacks were suspicious and the whites didn’t see the same characteristics as they seen on television and portrayed on their average Barbie dolls. For these same reasons, my understanding of what a racist was first-hand accounts from both oppositions. Thus leaving me in the middle of a very similar war zone. Blacks lives matter versus ‘all lives matter’ I never felt the need to pick a side but if I don’t I will just become another person ignoring the problem as if the patches in the road