African American Revolutionary War Patriots

P R O C L A M A T I O N 

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AFRICAN AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR PATRIOTS

WHEREAS, from 1775 to 1783 as many as 10,000 or more enslaved and free persons, including no fewer than 595 Virginians, made conscious choices to advance Independence and secure their own freedom and liberty by serving in the Revolutionary War; and

WHEREAS, forgotten African Americans of the Revolutionary War era established churches and institutions and created a heritage for liberty that became the bedrock of the modern Civil Rights Movement; and

WHEREAS, through Public Law 98-245, Congress encouraged State and local governments and private organizations, to acknowledge the involvement and contributions of black Revolutionary War patriots to the cause of freedom; and

WHEREAS, in December 2012, Congress approved legislation and on January 2, 2013, the President signed legislation authorizing the creation of a National Liberty Memorial to honor the forgotten patriots of Virginia, and hundreds of sister communities, on land in the monumental core of Washington, DC, that includes the National Mall;

NOW THEREFORE, I, Christian Dorsey, Chairman of the County Board of Arlington, Virginia, do hereby recognize the key role African Americans played in both the establishment of our nation and in the perpetuation of America’s founding principles and in this month of February 2019 honor

AFRICAN AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR PATRIOTS

and urge all Arlingtonians to do the same.

Christian Dorsey

Chairman