As America reckons with the death of George Floyd, another black man killed in 1770 in Colonial Boston has become a symbol of entrenched racism and oppression
George Floyd’s ancestors lost land, education and their lives to racist U.S. policies
Two years ago, a grass-roots movement was launched to push Boston’s leaders to honor Attucks by renaming the city’s famed Faneuil Hall — which bears the name of a wealthy 18th century slave owner — in Attucks’ honor. That campaign continues.In the 1850s, black abolitionists in Boston marked each massacre anniversary as Crispus Attucks Day, using the memory of his sacrifice to mobilize support for efforts to end slavery.
Adding to the injustice of Attucks’ death, founding father John Adams — the future president was a lawyer at the time — publicly defended the British soldier who shot him while privately praising Attucks’ courage.
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