During the Revolutionary War, both sides needed as many soldiers as they could get. In general, African Americans were willing to fight in exchange for their freedom, and first Britain and then America took advantage of this. The link below gives some surprising information and statistics about the armies on each side, but in short, the British were able to recruit slaves from the American side by saying they would release them from slavery when the war was over. The Patriots made similar promises later on. Slaves had the opportunity to choose whether or not to fight, as well as which side to fight for—although the word ‘opportunity’ suggests that this was a good thing, which isn't really the case. Aside from the obvious challenges presented to slaves and free men alike in trying to decide which side to support—not to mention the actual hazards of fighting—it turned out that the promise of freedom had been inaccurate. White people still didn't see other races as equals, and slavery continued in America until emancipation came about in 1863.