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July 6, 1988, Portland Observer, Page 3
Black History Corner: Washington’s Shameful History
In that same period, Benjamin
by John Hope Franklin
Banneker, a free Black mathema
tician, astronomer and almanac-
o understand Washington’s
writer, helped Maj. Pierre Charles
current racial tensions, it
would be helpful to go back to the L’Enfant, the French engineer,
survery the area that would be
beginning. From its earliest days,
come the District of Columbia.
the Nation’s Capital was marked
Whatever role Banneker played in
by a legalized racism, sanctioned
executing the final plans for the
by Congress, that denied basic
city, it did not succeed in making
rights to free Blacks as well as to
his existence in the capital any
slaves. Not only were free Blacks
easier
than in his native Maryland.
barred from voting, holding office
Indeed,
the founders of the new
and serving on juries, but they
city,
members
of Congress and
were also required to observe a
those
in
other
positions
of influ
special curfew designed to keep
ence
went
to
extraordinary
them off the streets after 10 p.m.
lengths to see to it that Blacks en
The District of Columbia, like
joyed
none of the rights and privi
the rest of early America, simply
leges
associated
with citizenship.
could not accept the idea of full
In
some
ways,
however, free
rights for tree Blacks. By 1860
Blacks
in
the
District
were better
Washington, seen as a haven for
off
than
they
would
have
been if
runaway slaves, was home to
Congress
had
not
replaced
the
more than 11,000 free Negroes,'
laws
of
Virginia
and
Maryland.
and yet Black people here were
When the D istrict was first
denied even the semblance of
created, Congress perm itted
equality.
Maryland laws to continue in
The legal foundation for racial
force in the segment ceded by
discrimination dates back to the
that state, while Virginia laws pre
C onstitutional Convention of
vailed in its former territory.
1787, which protected the institu
Soon afterwards, however, both
tion of slavery and the slave trade
states
increased their control
in a variety of ways, including one
over
the
free Negro population.
provision for the return of fugi
After
a
slave
plot was uncovered
tive slaves, another that determin
in
Richmond
in 1800, the Virginia
ed apportionment for representa
Assembly
declared
that any slave
tion by counting five slaves as
brought
into
the
state
and kept for
equal to three white persons and
a
year
had
to
be
seized
and sold,
one that barred the closing of the
and
the
person
who
had
brought
slave trade before 1808. Such pro
the
slave
into
the
state
was
to be
visions made it possible for
fined
$400.
In
1806,
Virginia
de
Washington to become “ the very
creed
that
any
free
Black
who
re
seat and center” of slavery and
mained
in
the
state
for
a
year
fol
the slave trade early in the 19th
lowing his emancipation would
century.
forfeit his freedom.
But not all of the District’s
Meanwhile, Maryland barred
Black residents were slaves even
free
Negroes from entering the
at the time of Thomas Jefferson’s
state
and remaining more than
inauguration in 1801. There were
two
weeks.
At the end of that time
some 783 free Negroes in Wash
the
free
Black
was liable for a fine
ington in 1800 compared to 3,244
of
$10
for
every
week he remained
slaves. By 1810 the number of
in
the
state.
If
the
person did not
free Blacks had increased to
pay
the
fine,
he
was
jailed and li
2,549; it reached 4,048 by 1820
able
to
be
sold
for
a
term suffi
and 6,152 by 1830, when for the
cient
to
pay
the
fine
and cost.
firs t tim e free Blacks o u t
From legislation such as this, pre
numbered slaves.
cedents and experience were es
The existence of slaves are free
tablished that would facilitate the
Blacks in the same community
enactment of vagrancy laws dur
posed problems that taxed the
ing the Reconstruction era and
creativity and ingenuity of the
peonage laws of a still later
most gifted statesmen. The situa
period.
tion was especially difficult in
But the laws of Virginia and
Washington, a city created by a
Maryland
did not long prevail in
national government that would
the
District
of Columbia. The Con
remain reluctant to give local
stitution
of
1787 has assigned to
authorities the power to deter
T
mine the future of slaves and free
Negroes as well as a host of other
issues.
In 1787 the framers of the Con
stitution made no distinction be
tween free persons, white and
Black, and one could have reason
ably assumed that free Blacks en
joyed the same rights and priv
ileges as whites who, by this
time, were not generally encum
bered by indentures — contracts
binding one to work as an appren
tice or servant for a specified
period in payment of an obliga
tion. But while the Constitution
was silent on the treatment of
free Blacks, both early con
gresses and the municipal gov
ernment of the new capital placed
restraints on their participation in
civil and political activities. The
First Congress decreed in 1790
that only white persons could
become naturalized citizens of
the United States. The Second
Congress restricted membership
in the m ilitia to white males. A
few years later, when Congress
enacted a fugitive-slave law, it did
not bother to protect free Blacks
who might be falsely accused of
being fugitive slaves.
There’s only one way
to come out ahead
ot the pack.
Congress authority to “ exercise
exclusive legislation in all cases"
in the District. As plans for the
District matured, Congress began
to enact legislation affecting all
of its residents, Black and white,
slave and free, replacing the laws
of Virginia and Maryland with
laws of its own. Yet if the situa
tion was improved, some inhabit
ants, especially free Blacks, had
difficulty in appreciating it.
As with all other immigrant
Blacks, those migrating into the
District had been excluded from
citizenship by the First Congress,
which specified that only white
aliens could become naturalized
citizens of the United States. This
did not prevent traders from
bringing in slaves from Africa and
the West Indies to sell on the live
ly markets of the District. Like
wise, Blacks were excluded from
service in the m ilitia by an act
passed by the Second Congress.
Having performed valiantly in the
War for Independence and in the
critical years following the war,
the 5,000 Black veterans watched
with obvious dismay as Congress
limited service in the m ilitia to
“ free able-bodied white male c iti
zens” between the ages of 18 and
45. It was indeed remarkable that
only white men could defend a
country whose independence had
been won by men of many races
and nationalities.
The District of Columbia did
distinguish itself from its neigh
bor states in the way it permitted
slaves to obtain their freedom.
Em anicipation was relatively
easy — granted either because of
heroic deeds, hum an itarian
owners, purchase or misrepresen
tation; once freed, residence for
ex-slaves was permitted. Further
more, Blacks who had been freed
in other states could come into
the District with relative ease.
This made it possible for run
aways to enter the District and
"lose” themselves in the growing
free Black community. It is small
wonder that by 1860 there were
11,131 free Negroes and only
3,185 slaves in the capital.
But freedom did not solve all or
even most problems. In early
Washington, the free Black com
munity was subject to what the
late George Washington Univer
sity Prof. Letitia Woods Brown, in
describing the nation as a whole,
Portland, OB 9/201
trict of Columbia. Congress sent
a signal to all states and other
jurisdictions that they could do
whatever they wished to Blacks
who were not slaves.
In barring persons who were
free but not white from voting and
holding office and in requiring
them to register, post bond and
be off the streets by 10 p.m., the
city of Washington — with the
blessing of Congress and the pre
sidents— made a mockery of the
democratic process and the prin
ciples of equality. This was as
profoundly incongruous in a dem
ocracy as slavery itself, and it
made it infinitely more difficult for
a country to find its way, groping
and halting, toward equality and
justice for all.
IN SUPPORT OF THE SCHOM BURG-Ossie Davis, the renown actor-writer-
director, center, discusses fundraising plans for the Harlem-based Schom-
burg Center for Research in Black Culture with John P. Mascotte, right
chairman and chief executive officer, The Continental Corporation and wit i
Howard Dodson, chief of the Schomburg Center. Mascotte was the host at a
recent luncheon for close to a hundred corporate executives who were
made aware of the Schomburg’s goals at Continental’s headquarters in the
Wall Street area, as a part of the Continental Community Commitment
Series. Davis, who is co-chairman of the Schomburg Commission for the
Preservation of Black Culture, was the master of ceremonies. Founded in
1925 by Arthur Schomburg, a Puerto Rican historian of African descent, the
Center is a part of the New York City library system and houses more than
five million historical items available to the public. It is currently in a $ 4.5
million, five-year fund-raising campaign that started in March, 1987.
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Especially reprehensible to
free Blacks was the rigid registra
tion system with its requirement
of posting a bond for good behav
ior. Another galling requirement
was that all Blacks be in their
places of abode by 10 p.m. They
vigorously contested the legality
of these restrictive measures but
without much success. One long
time resident, William Costen, a
free Black, did get some relief
when he refused to register and
post bond, arguing that he was
living in the District before the ob
noxious laws went into effect.
The court agreed that the board
could not prescribe the terms
upon which residents who al
ready lived in the city when the
laws went into effect could con
tinue to reside. It could, however,
apply the law to subsequent sett
lers. Even earlier free Black sett
lers, however, were required to be
off the streets by 10 p.m.
Perhaps the principal reason
that free Negroes were merely
slaves without masters, as Univer
sity of Maryland Prof. Ira Berlin re
fers to them, was that neither
Congress nor the town fathers
could conceive of Blacks except
as slaves. While giving due atten
tion to slaves and slavery, the
framers of the Constitution gave
no attention whatever to free per
sons of color. They merely be
queathed to the government of
the new capital the onerous task
of trying to establish a policy to
deal with Black people who were
not slaves, but who were denied
citizenship and equality by white
people at every level.
In failing to face the issue and
to solve it where it had the au
thority to do so, namely in the Dis
On June 24th 1988, the Royal Esquire Club, at 1708 N.E. Alberta.
Portland Oregon opened Its newly constructed downstairs lounge to its
members and their guests. Jeff Parks, general manager of the
establishment, observed the difficulty some of the senior members
experienced climbing the stairs and hopas the new addition will make
D o n ’t pay su p erm arket prices! S hop here
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Am erican Heart
Association
In Oregon
called “ periods of harsh repres
sion accompanied [by] explosions
of prejudice. Even in interludes of
relative calm, the pressure of
community efforts to restrict and
contain could be felt at all times."
One way to restrict and contain
the free Black community was to
disenfranchise it at the outset.
Thus the Seventh Congress,
meeting in 1801-1802, reached the
conclusion without serious de
bate that no Blacks should vote in
the District of Columbia; suffrage
in City Council elections was
restricted to “ free white male in
habitants of full age who have re
sided 12 months in the city and
paid taxes the preceding year.”
Likewise, only free white males
were eligible to be mayor or to sit
on the Board of Aldermen or the
Board of the Common Council.
Free Blacks, moreover, could not
testify in court against white peo
ple or serve on juries. The Board
of Aldermen and other officials
were to “ restrain and prohibit the
nightly and other disorderly meet
ings, of slaves, free Negroes and
mulattoes.”
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