Large questions loomed before the citizens of North Carolina in 1865 in the aftermath of the Civil War. North Carolina had to meet certain conditions to be allowed to rejoin the United States of America. Newly emancipated slaves wishing to make their desires known opened a five-day Freedman's Convention Sept. 29 in Raleigh in advance of the October State Constitutional Convention organized by white leaders. A free symposium Thursday, Oct. 1 at St. Paul A.M.E. Church will examine the two conventions.
North Carolina's white politicians held a State Constitutional Convention Oct. 2-19, which made no provision for black participation. A written document emerged from the Freedman's Convention and was issued in advance of the State Constitutional Convention at the State Capitol. The freedmen's document listed the rights they wanted in a new constitution, including the right to vote, testify in court and serve on juries.
Speakers include David Blight, American history professor of the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance and Abolition, Yale University; John David Smith, Charles H. Stone distinguished professor of American history, UNC-Chapel Hill; Jeffrey Crow, former director of the N.C. Office of Archives and History; Catherine Bishir, N.C. State University; Michael Curtis, Wake Forest University; Reginald Hildebrand, UNC-Chapel Hill history professor; Robert N. Hunter, N.C. Court of Appeals; Freddie Parker, N.C. Central University history professor, Patricia Timmons-Goodson, former N.C. Supreme Court Justice; and Darin Waters, UNC-Asheville history professor.
For additional information, please call. St. Paul A.M.E. Church is located at 402 W. Edenton St., Raleigh, (919) 832-2709.
The symposium is organized by the African American Heritage Commission and the North Carolina Civil War History Center. The African American Heritage Commission and the N.C. Civil War History Center are affiliated with the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.