Within a space of 12 years, the colony of Virginia under the British, had moved from its founding, through its struggle of the starving time, had developed some level of peace with the Native Americans, and now had a cash crop of tobacco. More specifically, in the year 1619, three distinct events had occurred; the House of Burgess had been established in Jamestown, VA, white woman had come over, and "twenty-some odd Negroes" were traded to the colonist of Jamestown from the hands of the Dutch. While these Negroes, were slaves in the hands of the Dutch, the English had no laws in Virginia that would have subjected these people to slavery. These people, like other immigrating Anglo-Saxons had become indentured servants. These Africans (more specifically, Angolians and Christian) were able to carve out a space for their existance within the English colony of Virginia. However, between 1650-1750; economic, social, and political events came to bear upon the decendants of these "twenty-some odd Negroes" and the new arriving West Africans, of whom now came into Virginia bound in chains, and some native born African Americans also faced enslavement or offering themselves up into slavery.
Since 1619, from the James River in Virginia and beyond, West Africans (who had become African Americans), have pushed and pulled within the spaces in which they existed. As framed within the American documents (the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution) that represents Freedom, Justice, and Equality (just to name a few enduring American values), African Americans have found ways for both personal and collective attainment of the aforementioned. They found freedom by running awaying from the plantation, suing for freedom in court, leading slave rebellions, mailing themselves away into freedom, writing, leading protest marches to dancing and singing.
The idea of this project is to "push and pull." This "push and pull" will happen within this space through the sharing of ideas that one may agree or disagree with BUT the goal is find Freedom, Justice, and Equality rather it be personal or collective as it pertains to the African American community.
Topics can be developed within three spaces:
1. Who are Afrcan Americans?
2. What are African Americans?
3. Who are African Americans becoming as they move toward the future?
Please follow this hard and fast rule: all posts are to be respectful and free of discriminatory language that one will find offensive and objectionable. Remember, these posts represent you. Always call upon your better angels.
