The conventions we meetings where free, freed and self emancipated blacks participated to promote their fight for equality.  In the meetings, they strategized on their campaigns to attain educational and labor goals, to seek legal justice, and to achieve civil and human rights.  One of the participants and one of the very few women delegates was Mary Ann Shadd Cary.  She used her writings in the press to influence the agendas of the conventions and to advocate on behalf of women and marginalized groups. The conventions were locally organized by cities, states, and at a national level.  The participants seeked community involvement to develop plans to raise funds for schools, literary societies, and to demand political and social rights.  From reading the minutes of one of the conventions (Colored Men's Convention, Detroit 9/12-13, 1865), it is evident that the meeting was significants as a way to organize groups seeking equal rights (Equal Rights League) but it seems that there were also divisions and disagreements among the participants.