Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (February 9, 1737– June 8, 1809) was an American political theorist and revolutionary who is best known for authoring Common Sense. The book was one of the most influential publications that furthered inflamed the revolutionary zeal of the American colonists to declare their independence from Great Britain. It was also a book that celebrated the idea of human rights and championed causes that sought to deliver liberty and justice to those suffering under tyranny. Paine write Common Sense with express intent to entice the American colonies into declaring independence from Great Britain. He would continue to support the revolutionary cause throughout the war, and his zeal would even carry him towards France. There he would again express support for a revolution, even as the French Revolution turned bloody and Paine was incarcerated as paranoia increased. Paine in every sense of the word was a revolutionary in his ideals. Just the concept of human rights and liberty for the common man would be enough. But he also professed a great dissatisfaction and opposition to the institution of slavery within the United States. He proposed the emancipation of slaves and the abolition of the institution as a whole. He also ran into problems with religion as despite being a Christian, he did not hold much faith in organized religions. He also proposed that the state should endeavor to assist its citizens with programs and other measures where needed. The poor, uneducated and more were the primary recipients of these proposals. John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Father and the Second President of the United States. He was instrumental in the American Revolution, championing the cause of independence, assisting in drafting the Declaration of Independence and even being one of the American diplomats sent to negotiate the peace treaty with Great Britain. Yet, despite these distinctions he was also someone who was very committed to seeing justice being done regardless of background. This is evident in his defense of the British soldiers who fired on the crowd at the Boston Massacre. When the court trial was mustered against them, Adams argued that they deserved a civil defense and proceedings just as much as anyone. He even went as far as to stand in their defense, ultimately winning the case in their favor. Adams was someone who was deeply committed to his own ideals. As his defense of the British soldiers proved, he was willing to exercise the concepts of right to counsel and the presumption of innocence even in cases where it may seem disastrous to do so. With anti-British sentiment at all time high in the American colonies, Adams nevertheless continued to practice what he believed was the just rights for everyone. Yet, he was also something of a moderate. He was opposed to Paine’s form of democracy that had little to no checks against the majority unbalancing government. Rather, Adams was a supporter of separation of powers that would ensure that no one group would gain dominance in government. Another important view of his concern’s slavery. John Adams was one of the few Founding Fathers who did not own slaves, and he even privately condemned it alongside his wife. However, it was not something that he brought up in politics as he feared that it would alienate southern politicians, and forestall the unification of the nation. He felt that the issue was too divisive to immediately act on, and suggested shelfing the topic for later. Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was a prominent leader of the American Revolution. He is best known for his fiery speeches, in particular his declaration of, “Give me liberty, or give me death!” at the second Virginia Convention. He was both a delegate to the Virginia Convention and the Continental Congresses on behalf of Virginia. For his service to the state, and his own fervent support for the Revolution Henry was eventually elected to the office of Governor of Virginia. Following the war, he was a supporter of the Articles of Confederation and was opposed to the United States Constitution which he feared would lead to an overly strong central government. This in turn ensured that he would distance himself from any political offices that came with the federal government. Henry stands in a unique position compared to his contemporaries in that he seemed to straddle the political line. On one hand he seemed to dislike the institution of slavery on a personal level, even as he continued to own slaves of his own. He also opposed the ratification of the Constitution as a he feared a strong, central government. As such he became an opponent of the very concept of a federal government that may conflict with the sovereignty imposed by states rights. He was surely devout in his faith, and yet also had leanings towards education in spite of his own history of being homeschooled. He is of course well known for his fervency is promoting the cause of independence from Great Britain. A cause which he saw as a direct challenge against tyranny. Abigail Adams Abigail Adams (November 22, 1744 – October 28, 1818) was the wife of the second President of the United States John Adams. She and her husband shared a close relationship, and it is partially in thanks to this, that historians know so much about the American Revolution and the early days of the United States. More than that, she was a great influence on her husband who often sought her advice and help on political and governmental issues. Because of that, Abigail in her letters often displayed a deep intellectual understanding of politics and the realities of her time period. This was at times at conflict with her own marriage, as she frequently expressed her own views that ran contrary to that of her husbands. With John Adams elevating to the presidency, she found herself at the center of American politics and society and as such worked to cement the position of the First Lady in the United States. One of the aspects of American society that deeply troubled Abigail Adams was women’s rights, or to be more exact the lack of it. She desired for more rights and opportunities to be made available to women, as she believed that women should not adhere to laws that were not made with their best interests in mind. To this end, she advocated for a great expansion of education for women and be recognized for their own intellectual capabilities. She went so far as to often submit said ideas to her husband, but these were not accepted by John Adams for numerous reasons, one of the main reasons being the loss of support it would entail for him in politics. She was also an opponent of slavery, and saw it as being inherently opposed to democracy espoused by the United States. Boston King Boston King (1759/1760 – 1802) was a slave from South Carolina who joined with the British forces during the American Revolution. King was attracted to the British promise of freeing slaves from their colonial masters if they allied with the British. Alongside some 25 to 50 thousand slaves who used the war as a means of escaping slavery. King himself related that service in the British Army was a way to escape the cruelty of his master. He served in the British Army as a boat pilot, suffering from rampant disease and supply issues during the course of the war. At the end of the war, King emigrated to Canada due to fears of being forced back into slavery. The British allowed some three thousand former slaves to emigrate to Nova Scotia, where King and his wife Violet (another former slave) also moved to. In time, the King family and many other former slaves would attempt to return to their ancestral roots in Africa. There King’s wife died from malaria, and Boston King would go onto become a pastor in Sierra Leone, teaching English and attempting conversion to the people there. Boston King was a man with interesting views about the world of his time. He self-professed to seeing whites as his enemy, yet also acknowledged towards the end of his life that this was a misguided mindset to harbor towards an entire group. He also saw the inherent contradiction in a war meant for liberty, that still utilized slaves. The offer of the British to free him and other slaves therefore, constituted a different path for him to follow. America to him was not one that would be made for all men to be equal despite the words of the Declaration of Independence. It was only through the British keeping to their word, did King believe that he and many other slaves actually had a chance of gaining their freedom. Joseph Brant Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807)-also known as Thayendanegea- was a political and military leader of Mohawk who played an important role during the American Revolution. In particular he became renowned for his allegiance to the British cause, which involved him leading his own unit of Loyalist volunteers against the Continental Army in New York. Brant used his education, military prowess, political connections and charisma to lead both the volunteers and the Mohawk in alliance with the British, in order to create borders and treaties that respected the sovereignty of the native tribes on the frontier. Brant labored extensively to unite the Indian tribes, in order to secure their independence and safety from the encroach of the American colonists. Brant was a leader of the Native people who understood that European colonization could no longer be undone. Forever more, the Natives would be neighbors with the colonists and Brant wished to engineer a situation where that was not disastrous for his people. He allied with the British not out any real sense of loyalty to them, but rather to benefit his people in persisting against continued expansion into their lands. The chance to forge a situation where the boundaries of the lands of the tribes could receive international recognition and legitimacy was one that he leaped at. He also saw the Revolutionary War as a chance to forge the Six Nations of the Indians into a true power in North America that would forever ensure that the American Indians would not be forced into submission by the colonists. Elizabeth Freeman Elizabeth Freeman (c.1744 – December 28, 1829) was a former slave in Massachusetts who was the first enslaved African-American to both file and win a suit against slavery. As an individual born into slavery, Freeman was noted for her own strong spirit and sense of independence. She would come into conflict with her master, and this culminated when she heard one day the state’s new constitution. The constitution contained the words “…All men are born free and equal…” and more, that to Freeman outright confirmed the truth she had always believed. With the help of a lawyer, she would bring her case before the state’s court. The court would find that slavery was inconsistent with the state’s own constitution, and such was the influence of the case that it was used to implicitly end slavery in Massachusetts. Elizabeth Freeman’s case is one of the strongest examples of slaves being aware of the contradiction found within the nation’s ideology. That a war can be fought with one of the guiding principles being that “…All men are born free and equal…” while at the same time establishing a government that tolerates slavery. Her own understanding of this is compounded by Massachusetts own constitution that was found to be incompatible with the institution of slavery. The United States was a new nation that professed reverence for the rights of man, and liberty for all, and yet there were many who suffer the indignity of slavery for the crime of their race. This was a reality that Freeman saw as unfair, and it was one that thanks to her efforts, was effectively neutralized in the state of Massachusetts.
