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Juneteenth and Other Lesser Known African-American Historical Culture

Khalid Elhassan June 15, 2020 34 min

Colonel Tye - American Revolutionary War — Colonel Tye as portrayed in a PBS documentary. PBS

28. Black Americans’ Relationship With the Land of Liberty Was Fraught From the Start

Black slaves arriving in Colonial America. History Channel

Even during its birth pangs, the newly emerging United States had a fraught relationship with its black population. They were not citizens, for the rights of citizenship were denied them, along with freedom. Instead, they were severely circumscribed subjects. Despite that, many wanted to help their land of birth gain its independence but were denied by many, including the Continental Army’s commander in chief, George Washington.

Today, the struggle between Britain and the American colonists is usually presented as a fight for freedom between tyranny and a people yearning for liberty. However, from the perspective of many black colonists, it was not so straightforward, and the side that offered them liberty and freedom from tyranny was that of the British, not the Patriots.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.