Come to our Civil War living history rally  honoring the Lower Mississippi Valley’s Union black soldiers, sailors, cavalry, nurses and supporting civilians on Saturday at Historic Jefferson College.

Featuring Indianapolis’ Khabir “Storyteller” Shareef, as Union Major Martin R. Delany, the highest ranking African descent field officer at the end of the Civil War, Darrell White as abolitionist Hiram R. Revels and former Natchez Mayor Phillip West as Grand Gulf native James Monroe Trotter, a leading fighter for “Negro” soldiers manhood and equal pay (The James M. Trotter Convention Center in Columbus is named in his honor). In Maryland and Washington, D. C., Region, Delany, Frederick Douglas, William Mercer Langton and Revels recruited “Negroes” for the Union Army. Revels also recruited “Negroes” in Missouri. Delany recruited “Negroes” in Ohio and Massachusetts for the 54th and 55th Massachusetts Infantry African descent.

After helping to defeat the Confederate slavery south, thereby achieving a double victory of self-emancipated freedom and preservation of the union, thousands upon thousands of “Negro” troops were on the move across America, going back to old homes places and relationships or seeking new homes and relationships. These self-emancipated ex-“slaves” freedom fighters from 1863 to 1865 with the help of thousands upon thousands of runaway enslaved people who served the Union as scouts, spies, nurses,  laundresses,  stevedores, foragers, general laborers, field hands, blacksmiths, teamsters, cooks and servants had won glory and honor in many Lower Mississippi Valley battles of life or death that were not just limited to those in Arkansas, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and suppression of Texas into surrendering.

But unlike in the North, the Lower Mississippi Valley’s confederates states there were no governments welcoming their heroic black Union soldiers back home. For them there were no public parades, banquets or bands playing patriotic songs.

To help provide long overdue remembrance and honor for the successful greatest generations of African descent freedom fighters’ our ninth annual Black and Blue Civil War Living History Program’s role players are dedicated to doing so.

They are Darrell White, Tony Heidelberg, Jamall Mccullum, Jeremy Houston, David “Black Dot” Williams, Jackie Marsaw, Danielle Terrell, Barbara Williams, Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-Cliff Boxley, Steven Richardson, Mayor Anthony Witherspoon, Daniel Timms, Jacolby Williams, Czvaniah Brooks, Amanda White, Yvonne Lewis, Calvin Woodfork, Milton Chambliss and Royal Hill.

Bring the whole family and chairs, rain or shine.
Ser Seshsh AB Heter-CM Boxley is the coordinator of the Friends of Forks of the Roads Society.