HIUS 390-D03
Civil Rights of Virgina
Liberty University
HIUS 390-D03
Every human being from the dawn of time desires to be free and to have the ability to decide
for himself where his happiness lies and how to fulfill it. These rights are given by God but often
denied by man through the imposition of power by mankind upon others. In the United States,
both before and after it became an independent nation, this desire remained unfulfillable to the
vast majority of African Americans and women of every race. It also affected those in poverty.
The advancement of civil rights has been a slow and laborious process and the state of Virginia,
as first a colony and then as one of the founding states, has played a prominent role in the
development of resisting then granting and gaining equal rights for every human being that call it
their home.
Viginia’s history for the long fought battle of civil rights all began in 1619 when the first
African slave ship arrived in Jamestown. Before long, slaves began to run away from the masters
that claimed ownership of them. By 1660 laws were enacted to protect the wealth of slave
owners by forcing returned slaves to pay for the cost entailed in the search for them. In 1662, a
law was written that children born to slave mothers but fathered by their free masters would
remain in the condition of the mother: as slaves. In 1669, it became excusable for a master to kill
a defiant slave because since it was decided, he was simply destroying his own property. In 1680,
it became illegal for any slave to own or carry any weapon that could be used to instigate an
insurrection or used to defend himself and slaves were not allowed to leave their master’s
property without written consent which they must carry with them. In 1682, it became legal to
enslave an non white person, including native Americans, if they refused to be converted to
, Christianity and if they dared to raise their hands in self defense or defiance, then it was legal to
end their life. By 1705, it was declared illegal for any minister to marry a white person to anyone
from any other race. If they dared to do so, they would be levied with a substantial fine. Sadly
throughout the rest of the 1700s, these laws were upheld and obeyed by most persons.
[ CITATION Samnd \l 1033 ].1
During the Civil War years, the Confederate states, Virginia being the lead, removed most
civil rights from all citizens and imposed extreme rules upon everyone. The absence of men due
to the war itself caused food production to drop and the slave to white ratio to rise. Martial law
then ensued and the state controlled voting, food consumption, and the market value of products.
These war time denials of all civil rights allowed them to confiscate land from non sympathizers,
deny prisoners the right to juries, and the only way to avoid incarceration was to “join the
Confederate army, an operation that effectively turned the Habeas Corpus Commission into an
additional conscription service.” [ CITATION Jimer \l 1033 ]. 2
With the abolition of all slavery in the nation, African American men began to fight for their
rights to vote as citizens of the state of Virginia. They began voting but their votes were not
counted. In 1867 to 1868, they had their votes counted to elect African Americans as delegates
for the Constitutional Convention. [ CITATION Bre20 \l 1033 ]. 3 African Americans began
rallying for free public schools and access to universities. In 1882, they opened Virginia Normal
and Collegiate Institute, the first public university for non whites. Black people primarily
supported Republican candidates which prompted the Democrat party to begin enacting laws to
ensure white supremacy within the state. Across the southern part of the nation, Jim Crow laws
began to be enacted to keep black and white people separated from one another. It was illegal to
have interracial marriages or for African Americans to use the same public facilities as white
people. Laws were passed that increased the difficulty for black people to vote. By the turn of the
century to 1900, African Americans had mostly stopped participating in politics due to the new
Civil Rights of Virgina
Liberty University
HIUS 390-D03
Every human being from the dawn of time desires to be free and to have the ability to decide
for himself where his happiness lies and how to fulfill it. These rights are given by God but often
denied by man through the imposition of power by mankind upon others. In the United States,
both before and after it became an independent nation, this desire remained unfulfillable to the
vast majority of African Americans and women of every race. It also affected those in poverty.
The advancement of civil rights has been a slow and laborious process and the state of Virginia,
as first a colony and then as one of the founding states, has played a prominent role in the
development of resisting then granting and gaining equal rights for every human being that call it
their home.
Viginia’s history for the long fought battle of civil rights all began in 1619 when the first
African slave ship arrived in Jamestown. Before long, slaves began to run away from the masters
that claimed ownership of them. By 1660 laws were enacted to protect the wealth of slave
owners by forcing returned slaves to pay for the cost entailed in the search for them. In 1662, a
law was written that children born to slave mothers but fathered by their free masters would
remain in the condition of the mother: as slaves. In 1669, it became excusable for a master to kill
a defiant slave because since it was decided, he was simply destroying his own property. In 1680,
it became illegal for any slave to own or carry any weapon that could be used to instigate an
insurrection or used to defend himself and slaves were not allowed to leave their master’s
property without written consent which they must carry with them. In 1682, it became legal to
enslave an non white person, including native Americans, if they refused to be converted to
, Christianity and if they dared to raise their hands in self defense or defiance, then it was legal to
end their life. By 1705, it was declared illegal for any minister to marry a white person to anyone
from any other race. If they dared to do so, they would be levied with a substantial fine. Sadly
throughout the rest of the 1700s, these laws were upheld and obeyed by most persons.
[ CITATION Samnd \l 1033 ].1
During the Civil War years, the Confederate states, Virginia being the lead, removed most
civil rights from all citizens and imposed extreme rules upon everyone. The absence of men due
to the war itself caused food production to drop and the slave to white ratio to rise. Martial law
then ensued and the state controlled voting, food consumption, and the market value of products.
These war time denials of all civil rights allowed them to confiscate land from non sympathizers,
deny prisoners the right to juries, and the only way to avoid incarceration was to “join the
Confederate army, an operation that effectively turned the Habeas Corpus Commission into an
additional conscription service.” [ CITATION Jimer \l 1033 ]. 2
With the abolition of all slavery in the nation, African American men began to fight for their
rights to vote as citizens of the state of Virginia. They began voting but their votes were not
counted. In 1867 to 1868, they had their votes counted to elect African Americans as delegates
for the Constitutional Convention. [ CITATION Bre20 \l 1033 ]. 3 African Americans began
rallying for free public schools and access to universities. In 1882, they opened Virginia Normal
and Collegiate Institute, the first public university for non whites. Black people primarily
supported Republican candidates which prompted the Democrat party to begin enacting laws to
ensure white supremacy within the state. Across the southern part of the nation, Jim Crow laws
began to be enacted to keep black and white people separated from one another. It was illegal to
have interracial marriages or for African Americans to use the same public facilities as white
people. Laws were passed that increased the difficulty for black people to vote. By the turn of the
century to 1900, African Americans had mostly stopped participating in politics due to the new
