AMERICA, AIN’T ALWAYS BEEN FREE FOR ME. A Semiquincentennial Editorial Commemorating the Black Experience in America at 250.

AMERICA, AIN’T ALWAYS BEEN FREE FOR ME. A Semiquincentennial Editorial Commemorating the Black Experience in America at 250.

By Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr.

New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church • Fort Worth, Texas

Reflecting on 250 Years of Independence Through the Lens of Black History.

As America commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, millions of Americans will gather beneath red, white, and blue skies to celebrate the birth of a nation founded upon the ideals of liberty, equality, and self-government.

We celebrate those ideals.

But we cannot celebrate 250 years of freedom as though every American experienced them equally.

History refuses to let us make that claim.

For millions of Black Americans, independence in 1776 did not mean freedom. While the Declaration of Independence proclaimed that “all men are created equal,” slavery remained legal, and generations of African Americans lived in bondage—denied citizenship, voting rights, education, property ownership, family integrity, and equal protection under the law.

America declared its independence in 1776.

Many Black Americans waited nearly another century for emancipation.

Even after slavery ended, freedom remained incomplete. Reconstruction briefly expanded constitutional rights before Jim Crow laws, segregation, racial violence, and voter suppression denied many Black Americans the full exercise of those rights for generations.

The struggle for liberty did not end with the Civil War.

It continued through churches, classrooms, courtrooms, lunch counters, bus stations, voting booths, neighborhoods, and streets across America.

The story of Black America is not separate from the American story.

It is the American story.

A Timeline of Freedom Still Being Won

1776 — The Declaration of Independence proclaims that “all men are created equal,” while slavery remains legal throughout much of the new nation.

1808 — Congress prohibits the international slave trade.

1857 — Dred Scott v. Sandford declares that people of African descent cannot be citizens of the United States.

1863 — The Emancipation Proclamation declares freedom for enslaved people in the Confederate states.

1865 — The Thirteenth Amendment abolishes slavery, except as punishment for crime.

June 19, 1865 (Juneteenth) — Major General Gordon Granger arrives in Galveston, Texas, and issues General Order No. 3, announcing the enforcement of emancipation for enslaved Black Texans. Juneteenth becomes a lasting symbol of delayed justice, resilient faith, and enduring hope.

1868 — The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship and equal protection under the law.

1870 — The Fifteenth Amendment prohibits denying the right to vote based on race.

1877 — Reconstruction ends, ushering in the era of Jim Crow.

1896 — Plessy v. Ferguson upholds racial segregation under the doctrine of “separate but equal.”

1954 — Brown v. Board of Education declares segregated public schools unconstitutional.

1955 — The Montgomery Bus Boycott demonstrates the power of organized nonviolent protest.

1957 — The Little Rock Nine integrate Central High School under federal protection.

1963 — The March on Washington calls America to fulfill its promise of equality.

1964 — The Civil Rights Act outlaws discrimination in many areas of public life.

1965 — The Voting Rights Act strengthens protections against racial discrimination in voting.

1968 — The Fair Housing Act prohibits many forms of housing discrimination.

2013 — Shelby County v. Holder invalidates the Voting Rights Act’s preclearance coverage formula, reducing a major federal safeguard for minority voting rights.

2013–2020 — Black Lives Matter grows into a nationwide movement advocating for racial justice and police accountability.

2023 — The Supreme Court limits the use of race-conscious admissions in higher education.

April 29, 2026 — In Louisiana v. Callais, the Supreme Court issues a 6–3 decision significantly narrowing the application of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act in congressional redistricting cases, marking another pivotal chapter in America’s continuing debate over voting rights.

America Is Still Becoming

The American experiment has always contained extraordinary ideals alongside painful contradictions.

The Constitution has been amended.

Laws have changed.

Barriers have fallen.

Yet every generation has been challenged to move the nation closer to its founding promise.

As America commemorates its Semiquincentennial, we should celebrate how far the nation has come while remembering those who waited generations for rights and opportunities that others possessed from the beginning.

My hope is not to diminish Independence Day.

My hope is to deepen our understanding of it.

Because freedom is most meaningful when we remember everyone who struggled to make America’s promises more fully shared.

America has always been striving toward its highest ideals.

That work continues today.

We celebrate America’s Independence.

But we cannot celebrate 250 years of freedom.

History refuses to let us make that claim.

For 250 years, America has not always been free for me.

Remembering that truth does not weaken America.

It strengthens America’s commitment to become the nation it has always aspired to be.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all are created equal…”

The work of making those words a lived reality continues.

About the Author

Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr. is Senior Pastor of New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas, President of the Ministers Justice Coalition of Texas, Chaplain of the Texas Buffalo Soldiers Association, and founder of the Digging for Dignity Legacy Project.

For more than forty years, Pastor Tatum has dedicated his life to civil rights advocacy, faith-based community leadership, higher education, public health, youth development, disaster response, and neighborhood revitalization. His ministry has consistently sought to unite the church, the academy, government, and the community in pursuit of justice, opportunity, and hope.

A recognized advocate for African American history and historical preservation, Pastor Tatum has led efforts to preserve and document the historic Fretwell and New Trinity Cemeteries at People’s Memorial Park in Haltom City, Texas. Through the Digging for Dignity Legacy Project, thousands of previously overlooked graves have been documented, helping preserve the stories of more than 7,700 Black pioneers and 500 Black military veterans for future generations.

His military heritage work has elevated the stories of the Buffalo Soldiers, Tuskegee Airmen, Red Ball Express, and generations of African American veterans whose faithful service to the nation often exceeded the freedoms they were permitted to enjoy at home. Through memorial services, educational initiatives, historical interpretation, and public commemorations, he has worked to ensure their legacy remains a permanent part of America’s story.

Pastor Tatum is also the visionary behind numerous community initiatives, including the Erma Johnson Hadley Chancellor CommuniVersity Center, God’s Army Youth Development Ministry, Community Food Bowl, Clinic Without Walls, Peace From a Pallet, and multiple education, citizenship, and workforce development partnerships serving Fort Worth’s historic neighborhoods.

A graduate of the University of North Texas, Pastor Tatum became the first African American recipient of the University’s Centennial Community Service Award in 1990. He has also been recognized among Fort Worth’s civic leaders for his continuing work in faith, education, public service, historic preservation, and community engagement.

“America, Ain’t Always Been Free for Me” reflects both a historical examination of the Black experience in America and the lived ministry of a pastor who has spent more than four decades preserving history, pursuing justice, honoring veterans, strengthening communities, and helping America move closer to its enduring promise of liberty and justice for all.

— Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr.

Senior Pastor, New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church

President, Ministers Justice Coalition of Texas

Chaplain, Texas Buffalo Soldiers Association

Founder, Digging for Dignity Legacy Project

Black Texans, Inc.