Five years before the "shot heard round the world" flashed from a minuteman's musket, five unarmed patriots fell in the struggle for freedom. The first of these was not a soldier or statesmen or business owner. In fact, he wasn't even a freeman but rather a runaway slave turned sailor named Crispus Attucks.
A slave for his first twenty-seven years, Attucks learned the value of freedom when he ran away from his master and, assuming the name of Michael Johnson, he sailed the high seas in one of the most dangerous professions of his time: whaling.
Due to his heritage (part African, part Wampanoag), few jobs were open to him. This did not serve as a deterrent but rather an obstacle to be overcome, and, with his trademark tenacity and dedication, Attucks became a professional sailor and rope maker.
Because of his profession, Attucks faced the ever-present danger of being impressed into service for the British Navy. Instead of intimidating him, it deepened his hatred for tyranny and grew his love for self-governance to the point where he was willing to fight for it.
The chance for this fight came on March 5th, 1770. Angry with the British and never one to back down from a fight, Attucks waded through the crowd of angry colonists towards the British. Seizing a wooden stave, he attacked Captain Preston and seized a soldier's weapon before being shot dead.
The first to fall in the fight for liberty, Attucks stands today as an example of patriotism and love of country seldom seen before or since. Risking imprisonment, slavery, and even death, he did his part with vigor to free himself and his land from tyranny.
The same choice confronts patriots today. Congress continues to act in a manner detrimental to our national welfare and encourages local governments to aid in the removal of the freedoms this land was founded on. Now is the time for every patriot to follow the example of Attucks. Let us do our part for freedom.
Article V of the U.S. Constitution gives states the power to call for a convention to propose amendments. The only way this can occur is for freedom-minded citizens to encourage their state legislatures to call for such a convention. The five that fell on that cold March day gave their all to defend liberty. It must be preserved with no less determination, or it will perish.
