The history of civil rights in the United States traces its roots back to the arrival of slaves in Virginia in1619. The first person to raise the issue of civil rights was Lucy Terry when she published the poem titled “Last American Indian attack” in 1746. She inspired other black people in her village, Deerfield, Massachusetts, to rise against the defective production system.
However, the publication was not made official until 1855 when it was included in the poem Bar’s Fight. In 1773, Phyllis Wheatley contributed to the fight for freedom by writing the poem titled “Various subjects, religious, and moral,” and she was considered as the first African-American woman who made her literature public.
Because of continued conflicts with slave owners, the legislature made forced labor illegal in the Northwest Territory in 1787, but the constitution was amended to legalize slave trade, and it was not be abandoned until 1808. Eli Whitney’s discovery of cotton gin intensified slavery, and as a result, it enhanced the need for slaves in various states in 1793.
In the same year, the Congress instituted constitutional amendments that made changes to the Fugitive Slave Law. This gave local and federal authorities the power to capture and return slaves who tried to escape from their respective places of work. In 1800, Gabriel Prosser, who was one of the slaves engaged in trade, marshaled Africans to resist forced labor and instructed his fellow blacksmiths to march to Richmond, Virginia.
However, the plan was unsuccessful since it was revealed and the perpetrators were sentenced to death. The government ordered the tightening of the law to prevent the occurrence of the same case in the future. In 1809, the major part of the parliament voted for a bill that outlaws additional importation of slaves from Africa and other parts of the world.
In 1820, an agreement was reached between slave owners and the government, popularly referred to as Missouri Comprise, which banned slavery in the northern part of the country. In 1822, Denmark Vesey, a carpenter who bought his liberty at a considerable value, encouraged slaves to rise against their masters in South Carolina. Unfortunately, the racket was unraveled, and Vesey together with his supporters was hanged.
In 1831, Nat Turner, who served as an Africa preacher, sacrificed his life when he volunteered to lead an uprising by launching a rebellion in Southampton country, Virginia. The state militia dealt with the situation and defeated the activists. The preacher and his followers were sentenced to death while the state legislators instituted tighter laws to prevent resistance in the future.
In the meantime, William Lloyd Garrison was preparing an article titled “Liberator,” which was published in the weekly paper. On 2 July 1839, slaves, revolted against captors murdering a number of them, managed to escape.
In 1846, Democrats initiated the Wilmot Proviso with the aim of pronouncing slavery as unlawful in the southern states, but Republicans shut it down. In the same year, Fredrick Douglass published his article in the newspaper calling on the abolition of slavery.
In 1849, Harriet Tubman succeeded in running away and led a group of civil rights activists in the Underground Railroad uprising. In 1850, the revolution took a new twist when a debate raged on whether the new territories were to be declared slavery states. In 1852, Harriet Beacher Stowe published a narrative titled Uncle Tom’s Cabin condemning slavery.
In 1854, Congress approved the Kansas-Nebraska act that effectively divided the two territories; it was the act that raised tension between slaves and masters. In 1857, the courts intervened in the debate declaring that Congress had no powers to enact laws on slavery in different cases involving Dred Scot.
In 1863, President Lincoln declared slavery illegal. In 1879, many black people migrated to the north since they expected to receive better compensation. By 1900, slavery had been banned, but the courts were still reluctant to accept the changes.