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The Fight for Equal Rights Black Soldiers in the Civil WarHistorical BackgroundOnce let the low man get upon his person the brass letter, U.S., let him get an double birdie on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on earth that can deny that he has realize the right to citizenship.Frederick Douglass The issues of emancipation and military service were intertwined from the onset of the Civil War. word of honor from Fort Sumter set off a rush by free people black men to enlist in U.S. military units. They were turned away, however, because a Federal law dating from 1792 barred Negroes from bearing arms for the U.S. phalanx (although they had served in the American Revolution and in the War of 1812). In capital of Massachusetts disappointed would-be volunteers met and passed a resolution requesting that the Government modify its laws to endure their enlistment. The capital of Nebraska administration wrestled with the idea of authori zing the recruitment of black troops, concerned that much(prenominal) a move would prompt the border states to secede. When Gen. John C. Frmont (photo acknowledgment 111-B-3756) in Missouri and Gen. David Hunter (photo citation 111-B-3580) in South Carolina issued proclamations that emancipate slaves in their military regions and permitted them to enlist, their superiors sternly revoked their orders. By mid-1862, however, the escalating issue of former slaves (contrabands), the declining number of white volunteers, and the increasingly pressing personnel needs of the articulation host pushed the Government into reconsidering the ban. As a result, on July 17, 1862, Congress passed the Second confiscation and Militia Act, freeing slaves who had masters in the Confederate Army. Two days later, slavery was abolished in the territories of the United States, and on July 22 President Lincoln (photo citation 111-B-2323) presented the preliminary draft of the Emancipation Proclamation to his Cabinet. After the Union Army turned back Lees first invasion of the North at Antietam, MD, and the Emancipation Proclamation was subsequently announced, black recruitment was pursued in earnest. Volunteers from South Carolina, Tennessee, and Massachusetts filled the first authorized black regiments. recruitment was slow until black leaders such as Frederick Douglass (photo citation 200-FL-22) encourage black men to become soldiers to ensure eventual full citizenship. (Two of Douglasss give sons contributed to the war effort.) Volunteers began to respond, and in May 1863 the Government established the Bureau of dyed Troops to manage the burgeoning numbers of