The first Black battalion of the American Revolution

The Founding Fathers began the Declaration of Independence with a revolutionary claim: “that all men are created equal.” The Founding Fathers didn’t always practice what they preached Antoine: You have to remember that General Washington is a Virginia slave owner. The idea of seeing Black men in arms, it’s a nightmare for him. But Black colonists still played major roles in the Revolution, starting on the side of the British. At the time, many American colonies were economically and socially dependent on slavery—a fact the British saw as a weakness to exploit. About 20,000 enslaved people joined the British troops with the promise of freedom after the war.
These numbers increased Britain’s already huge numerical advantage over the unorganized, unprepared revolutionaries. Antoine: It kind of pushes Washington into allowing for Black soldiers to enter into the Continental Army. General Washington allowed the patriots in each colony to make their own decision on whether to allow Black soldiers in their armies. Patriots in Rhode Island took a page from the British playbook with the Slave Enlistment Act of 1778, which promised freedom in return for military service. Antoine: The mentality at this time and throughout the 18th and 19th century is that we do not have the mental capacity to become soldiers or train soldiers. So this is an opportunity for those that are enslaved and want to gain their freedom to serve the country. These soldiers enlisted under the impression that they would be recognized as full American citizens after the war. Antoine: What happens in reality is something totally different. The Slave Enlistment Act was quickly overturned. Only a few hundred enslaved men were permitted to join the Continental Army in Rhode Island. These men became known as the “first Black battalion” in American history. But their bravery on the battlefield was never rewarded. Some of the soldiers were reenslaved after the United States gained freedom from Britain. Others fought for the rest of their lives to be recognized as veterans. It would be almost a century before the abolition of slavery in the United States. Antoine: Our goal is to let the world know that we were there. We weren't sitting on the sidelines. We were standing shoulder to shoulder with our brethren to fight for independence of this country in the hopes that with independence comes emancipation.