By Russell Roberts.
It’s true.
Although racists would like to ignore this fact, many historians accept it as true that the first man to die for the cause of freedom in America was an African-American: Crispus Attucks.
Ironically, he died while agitating for freedom for a country in which most of his own people were slaves.
Not much is known about Attucks’ life, as is common with many African-Americans at this time, but some believe his ancestry was African/Native American. His father was thought to be an African named Prince Younger, who was brought to America as a slave. His mother was believed to be Nancy Attucks, a Natick Indian. The family lived in Framingham, Mass.
Displaying a strong desire for freedom, Attucks ran away in 1750, at age 27, and made his way to Nantucket, where he got a job as a harpooner on a whaling ship. Historians agree that by 1770, Attucks was in Boston.
There, on a cold day early in March, tensions steadily escalated between British troops and Boston citizens. After dusk on March 5, Attucks and others, holding clubs, approached British soldiers. No one knows for sure who threw it, but a British soldier was struck with a piece of wood, and some say Attucks threw the wood. Panicked, the soldiers opened fire.
Attucks was the first to die, getting struck by two bullets in the chest. Four others joined him in what is known today as the “Boston Massacre.” Black man and former slave, Attucks’ background didn’t matter to the people of Boston, his is body lay in state in prestigious Faneuil Hall for several days until he was buried.
Attucks is an important figure in African-American history – a man who was not afraid to stand up for freedom, despite the fact that it was denied him in earlier life.
Featured Photo Credit: dailykos.com
No Responses to “First Death In American Revolution Was An African-American”