On January 6, 1773, the first public protest to a legislature made by blacks in New England occurred. Although there had been numerous cases of enslaved blacks seeking freedom through the state courts, this was the first public protest of its kind. The petition was submitted to Governor Hutchinson and the General Court of Massachusetts, and though it was submitted on behalf of "many slaves" living in Massachusetts, it only contained the signature of one man named Felix. Felix is thought to have been the first slave to petition his colony's government.

Though the men and women on whose behalf this petition was submitted had been enslaved for many years, the text of the petition shows remarkable faith in the goodness and fairness of the government. For example, Felix writes, "We think Ourselves very happy, that we may thus address the Great and General Court of this Province, which great and good Court is to us, the best judge, under God, of what is wise, just and good," and he repeatedly emphasizes that the slaves are trying not to be "presumptuous" in their petitioning. (www.pbs.org)

Despite this seeming faith in the court system, Felix does bring up many injustices that the enslaved faced. "We have no Property. We have no Wives. No Children. We have no City. No Country." He also endeavors to paint blacks in a favorable light, refuting some common misconceptions of the time by stating:

Despite the respectful tone and convincing arguments, the governor of Massachusetts withheld approval, and the measure never became law. Indeed, it was not until four years later, in 1777, that Vermont became the first state to abolish slavery.