From William Wells Brown and the abolition movement to Rev. Jesse Edward Nash and the fight for civil rights in the 20th century, Buffalo has a long history of dedicated citizens working together to ensure full rights for everyone.
Read on to learn about their lives and accomplishments and consider the lessons that can be applied in the fight for equality today.
Enslavement was present in Buffalo from its founding. One of its early representatives in Congress, Peter Buell Porter, enslaved five people. In the 1850s, enslavers would come to Buffalo to try to capture freedom-seekers before they reached Canada.
Black and white people fought together to end enslavement in New York and the nation. William Wells Brown escaped slavery in Kentucky and moved to Buffalo, where he helped other freedom-seekers. He was also the first Black novelist in the United States.
Because of its location on the Canadian border and the Erie Canal, Buffalo was a key Underground Railroad destination. Thousands of freedo
Federal housing policy starting in the 1930s transformed the way people lived in Western New York and elsewhere. The federal government and local bankers and realtors created redlining maps that cautioned against investing in minority neighborhoods. In Buffalo, the map warned about “Negroes of a poor type.”
The Federal Housing Administration provided tens of millions of dollars in loans for white people to buy houses in the Buffalo suburbs. Black people were considered negative influences and could not get loans. Racially restrictive covenants prevented Black people from living in many white neighborhoods unless they were working as servants.
In response, people from across Erie County mobilized to fight for justice in housing, education and employment. Advocates like Joseph Easley successfully fought for a school desegregation plan. The Buffalo American, founded by Frank and Carmelita Merriweather, covered good news as well as concerns in the Black community.