GETTING THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION STARTED

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Before, during, and after the American Revolution, Black people played significant roles in the development of this country:

CRISPUS ATTUCKS was an important catalyst in getting the revolutionary war started. Born in Framingham, Massachusetts in 1723, he was owned by a local church official.

After serving his master for many years, Attucks escaped to freedom. He lived as a free man for over 20 years, working aboard whaling ships as a sailor; many free Black men became sailors, as the voyages sometimes lasted a year or longer.

In 1770, while stationed in Boston, Attucks joined a group of men on Dock Square, jeering and complaining about the presence of the British troops.
 to the British
After some heated words, a fight broke out. Attucks grabbed a soldier's bayonet and knocked him down. Soon rocks and snowballs were being thrown at the soldiers.

The British soldiers began firing. Attucks was struck first. He died instantly. Four other Americans also died. These deaths angered the colonists and made them want to stand up to the British.
                                                                       
They called this shooting the Boston Massacre.

Crispus Attucks was long remembered afterwards as the first patriot to give his life for the revolutionary cause.

In 1888, an American artist made a statue of Crispus Attucks. You can see it if you visit Boston.



For further info on Crispus Attucks, google-search his name and read all related entries.