On this day, Paul Cuffe, a wealthy African American and Wampanoag businessman, along with other free Black men in Massachusetts, petitioned the state legislature. They argued against taxation without representation, demanding the right to vote, as they were being taxed despite being denied full citizenship and political participation.
This act of protest came just after the ratification of the Massachusetts state constitution and was one of the earliest documented civil rights petitions by African Americans in U.S. history. Paul Cuffe’s leadership foreshadowed the continuing struggle for Black suffrage and civil rights.
© 2025 KnowThyHistory.com. Know Thy History
