Free blacks in the antebellum period--those years from the formation of the Union until the Civil War--were quite outspoken about the injustice of slavery. Their ability to express themselves, however, was determined by whether they lived in the North or the South. Free Southern blacks continued to live under the shadow of slavery, unable to travel or assemble as freely as those in the North.


African Americans also engaged in achieving freedom for others, which was a complex and dangerous undertaking. Enslaved blacks and their white sympathizers planned secret flight strategies and escape routes for runaways to make their way to freedom. Although it was neither subterranean nor a mechanized means of travel, this network of routes and hiding places was known as the "underground railroad."

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart2.html

By the 19th century roughly 10% of African Americans were free born! The free black in the Antebellum Period is an oft overlooked figure in US history, thanks for the link MBA!

Excellent Sister Angel! Thank you! I really enjoyed the link!

again thankz for the history trail and link sista

Free blacks in the antebellum period--those years from the formation of the Union until the Civil War--were quite outspoken about the injustice of slavery. Their ability to express themselves, however, was determined by whether they lived in the North or the South. Free Southern blacks continued to live under the shadow of slavery, unable to travel or assemble as freely as those in the North.


African Americans also engaged in achieving freedom for others, which was a complex and dangerous undertaking. Enslaved blacks and their white sympathizers planned secret flight strategies and escape routes for runaways to make their way to freedom. Although it was neither subterranean nor a mechanized means of travel, this network of routes and hiding places was known as the "underground railroad."

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart2.html


Hey Angel, this thread has given me some ideas for some reading... Namely, I am going to try to look up on brother mr. Ben Banneker, the architect of Washington, D.C., and the White House... You get snips, and drips, and not much else about this GREAT man around Black History Month, but he is not acknowledged for his genius because he was not a white male... We know the pattern, for if he were, nobody would not know his name... That's a book, his biography, I plan to read this year... Thanks Heavenly Goddess Black Angel Woman...(smile!)

Peace!
Isaiah