Black activists at the 1843 colored convention claimed birthright citizenship under the Constitution

Evidence

At that year’s meeting, Samuel H. Davis, an Oberlin College graduate, minister, and educator, advocated for the recognition of Black Americans as citizens in his keynote address. The U.S. Constitution guaranteed their “happiness in any part of the country,” he said, along with “the elective franchise.” Davis insisted that “this is our own native land…. We love our country, we love our fellow citizens, but we love liberty more.” He acknowledged that efforts to secure Black citizenship had not yet succeeded. Still, Davis believed that it was up to Black activists alone to win that recognition: “For ourselves and in ourselves there is a mighty work to be accomplished…which can come from no other source.” — Nikole Hannah-Jones et al., The 1619 Project, 710

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader project narrative of Black Americans claiming founding-era rights and constitutional birthright — the reframing thesis that citizenship was claimed, not granted.