Laura Edwards writes:
“The South did not exist as “the South” until the creation of the Confederacy. It was a diverse region, with a long and complicated history. And during the Civil War, not all Confederates were Southerners and not all Southerners were Confederates.
“Black Southerners provide the most obvious example. Barred from participating in politics, enslaved African-Americans could not register their opinions about secession, let alone slavery, at the ballot box. But they made their opinions clear in their actions.
“Enslaved African-Americans risked their lives to flee to occupied territory, not just to escape slavery but to assist in the fight against the Confederacy. Ultimately, thousands of African-American recruits from Southern states fought in the United States Army. Many more assisted the Union Army as civilians…”
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