Mother A.M.E. Zion Church

In the late 1700s, the John Street Church in New York City, a predominantly white Methodist congregation, welcomed African Americans, including leaders like Peter Williams and James Varick. However, due to frustrations over racial inequality, Varick led a group of Black worshipers to establish the Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in 1796, the first Black church in New York State. The church became a significant center for abolitionist activism, with figures like Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth among its members. The AME Zion Church played a crucial role in the fight against slavery and racism.