African Americans in the Civil War

Throughout the duration of the Civil War in 1861 to the 1920s, African Americans made significant strides toward their advancement in America and toward equity with whites. After having being subjected to white governance and enslaved for so long, their dependence generated a sense of unfamiliarity with their newly acquired emancipation. This uncertainty sparked many debates regarding the most effectual way to go about receiving their “inalienable” rights as human beings, not merely substandard Negros as they were perceived to be. However, some thought that the most effective approach would be to acquiesce to the subservient status upheld by whites in order to earn their respect until equity permeated. Others were more combative in their dealings, hoping that militancy would force whites to surrender unto blacks their basic rights. Those who remained thought that progress was not plausible wherever they were, thus a physical vacation would be essential to escape confinement and oppressive attitudes toward blacks. In spite of their differing approaches, the discrepancies amongst blacks were bound by a common interest: to ensure a more promising and progressive future for the entirety of all African Americans. Foremost, in order to comprehend the complexity of the African American dilemma, it is essential to understand their preceding history. Before the outbreak of the Civil War, fought from 1861 until 1865, blacks were bound by the callousness of slavery. Though the initial claims for the intent of the war was to reunite the seceding southern states with the Union, it ultimately became about the retention of slavery in southern states. It was during the Civil War that blacks were permitted to enter combat for the first time,... ... middle of paper ... ...minates and resonates with endless possibilities. However, at the war’s close, the soldier’s valiant efforts were diminished by the conflict that was ignited by their return. The Red Summer of 1919 was the result of competition between races for jobs and other resources within the finite space of the North, but the targeted blacks did not allow themselves to be victimized by the occurrence; instead the “New Negro” retaliated “making America safe for himself.” Nevertheless, the surging conflicts did not hinder or impede the tenacity of the African American, but their new perspective and perception of life infiltrated into the arts. Particularly in Harlem, blacks began to broaden their horizons as they endeavored to create new forms of art, music, and literature thereby demarcating the Harlem Renaissance of 1920 as an era of great ingenuity for African Americans.