MASSACHUSETTS 54th REGIMENT
Imagine being an African American person in the 1800s and putting your life on the line for the "your"country. Just to find out you're getting underpaid than a person who has a lighter skin tone than you. When everyone is doing the same task. Also, imagine being a runaway slave during that time, in an agreement to fight in war in exchange for your freedom. Your life is already at 10x more risk than it was before During the Civil War, the Massachusetts 54th Regiment was assembled so that African-Americans, some including former slaves, were able to fight for the freedom of others. They trained hard and fought heroically to support the cause of freedom after President Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation. They faced many obstacles as soldiers, including prejudice and unfair treatment. Furthermore, the government then adds more weight on to your shoulders just to add in the fact blacks are limited to the job task they can be assigned to just because of the color of your skin. IN the 1800s white men were more prone to be elected to a recruiter or officer positions during this time compared to the hard-working African Americans who were doing more of the work. During this time you are also witnessing lots of leaders lose their life for something that seemed like the greatest way to freedom. Such as Colonel Robert a famous American Officer. To sum up this is a narration of a solider from the 1800s from the 54th regiment speaking on the behalf of over 1,500 soldiers who put their lives on the line for freedom.
