"If I could save the Union, without freeing the slaves, I would do it. If I could do it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would do that. What I do about slavery and the coloured race, I do because I believe it would help to save the Union."

Those were the words of our beloved 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. He penned those words in a letter to Horace Greely, written August 22, 1862. In the letter, he expressly stated his only purpose for freeing the slaves was to save the Union, which was in the middle of a civil war.

"If I could save the Union, without freeing the slaves, I would do it. If I could do it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would do that. What I do about slavery and the coloured race, I do because I believe it would help to save the Union."

Those were the words of our beloved 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. He penned those words in a letter to Horace Greely, written August 22, 1862. In the letter, he expressly stated his only purpose for freeing the slaves was to save the Union, which was in the middle of a civil war.

Lincoln is strongly revered by many Blacks for his January 1, 1863 proclamation, emancipating the slaves. Many do not realize that like many who have played a major role in the liberation of African-Americans, Lincoln was a reluctant participant. However, he had been groomed to deal with the issue of slavery all of his life.

By the time Lincoln reached adulthood, he was well versed in arguments opposing slavery and had developed sympathy regarding their plight. His parents, Thomas and Nancy Lincoln, were staunch abolitionists. In fact, Little Mount Church, a Separate Baptist congregation, was so adamantly opposed to slavery that there were times the members could not meet peacefully due to disputes over the issue.

As an adult, Lincoln never owned slaves, but did employ freed Black servants. He also lived in a neighborhood in which 21 African-Americans from free to slave also resided. However, although he and his wife were always respectful toward the Blacks they encountered, they were never noted to have any Black friends.

It was not until his presidency; during one of the most critical moments in American history that Lincoln would develop a most unusual friendship with a Black man named Frederick Douglass. Douglass, an escaped slave and outspoken abolitionist, helped Lincoln find the conscience of his youth.
Among Lincoln’s first encounter with Douglass, was when Douglass called upon Lincoln to establish colored regiments in the Union army’s war against the confederacy at the onset of the war.

"The mission of the war was the liberation of the slaves as well as the salvation of the Union. I reproached the North that they fought with one hand, while they might fight more effectively with two; that they fought with the soft white hand, while they kept the black iron hand chained and helpless behind them; that they fought the effect, while they protected the cause; and said that the Union cause would never prosper until the war assumed an anti-slavery attitude and the Negro was enlisted on the side of the Union," Douglass is reported as saying in his speeches.

Douglass finally got his wish following the Proclamation of Emancipation in January 1863. He personally began recruiting soldiers to form the 54th Regiment of Colored Troops, enlisting two companies of men including his sons, Charles and Lewis.

Douglass became the first Black man to visit the White House as a guest when he challenged Lincoln with complaints that Black soldiers were provided with second-class treatment. During his visit, he addressed three issues: pay, fair treatment and opportunity for promotions when their valor in battle demanded it. Within a few days, Lincoln ordered, “that for every soldier of the United States killed in violation of the laws of war, a rebel soldier shall be executed; and for every one enslaved by the enemy or sold into slavery, a rebel soldier shall be placed at hard labour on the public works.”

Douglass had many visits with Lincoln after that, during which Lincoln treated him with the utmost respect, giving his visit high priority. “In his company I was never in any way reminded of my humble origin, or of my unpopular colour,” Douglass writes.
Before the war ended, many Black soldiers were receiving equal pay and treatment.