Editing Free Black Community (section)

== Legacy ==

Philadelphia's Free Black Community left lasting legacies that extend far beyond the city. The institutions founded in the late 18th and early 19th centuries—the AME Church, the benevolent societies, the educational institutions—became models for Black communities throughout America. Leaders who emerged from this community, from Richard Allen to William Still to Octavius Catto, shaped African American history nationally. W.E.B. Du Bois's 1899 study "The Philadelphia Negro," focused on the Seventh Ward, established the field of urban sociology and provided a scientific foundation for understanding African American life. The community's history reminds us that Black Americans were not passive victims of oppression but active builders of institutions, communities, and movements for liberation.<ref name="dubois">{{cite book |last=Du Bois |first=W.E.B. |title=The Philadelphia Negro: A Social Study |year=1899 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania |location=Philadelphia}}</ref>