African American children were affected differently just because of there skin color. Many of them were slaves that worked on large plantations. Some of them were soldiers that took part in the fighting. This war was particularly hard for the African Americans because they had to deal with the stress of being a slave along with the war. Another reason that the war was tough on the slaves was because, Britain promised them freedom if they helped them fight against the Rebels. Slaves that belonged to rebels could decide to run away to join the British. There was a lot of danger in this. If your master found out and caught you trying to escape, you would be beaten and maybe even put to death. If you made it and joined the British army, you may die in combat. If you were to survive the war, you would be free for life. As you can see, this was a very hard choice to make. If you were freed by fighting with the British, it would be very hard to find someplace that would treat them as free people. They would go somewhere and they would be treated much like they were before but they were free.
The African American children could also help the British and gain their freedom. The children acted as bugle boys, drummer boys, and messengers. The girls and women would act as cooks, house workers, or nurses for the soldiers wounded in the war. The children may have actually excited to go away to war because they would have gotten a break from all of the work that they had to do as slaves.