Black people had several significant roles, which moved the Civil War movement in the US. At the beginning of the Civil war, African American slaves took almost 10% of the US population. They were a crucial workforce in the South, as they were the basis of the agricultural economy of the South.
At the same time, they were the source of the economic intricacy, as the slave-based economy of the South was inconsistent with the picture of America as the land of opportunity. The Civil War was their chance to be liberated. Thus, Black slaves were one of the primary reasons for the Civil War.
Enslaved African Americans also helped to fight against slavery. From the first days of the Civil War, legions of African American slaves left their masters to find refuge in the North. When the people in the North saw the struggles of slavery, many of them, including Abraham Lincoln, were converted to support emancipation. This implies that another crucial role of the African Americans was to demonstrate the disgusting side of the slave-based economy.
Finally, African Americans shifted the balance of powers by joining the Union. When Black people were allowed to join the Union Army, more than 180,000 joined it, while others joined the free workforce of the North. As a result, African Americans had a double effect on the balance of powers: they brought manpower to the union side and denied power from the production of the Southern economy. In short, African Americans played at least three roles during the Civil War.