"proposed enlistment of African-Americans"

It was the proposal of the conscription of slaves, not blacks as a race that cause the biggest stir. Other laws passed dealt with the rights of free blacks in service and care and maintenance of slaves.

I've seen the rules for cooks and it allows for slaves along with whites and free blacks to be enlisted in this task; the main point being the allowance for slaves. There are no restrictions for Army volunteers. Slaves could not volunteer for anything.

The political problem in the Confederacy was with the idea of conscripting slaves into the Army. Slaves could not be volunteers without the consent of the master. Arming large groups of slaves was also a moral problem with slave owners. Although there are reports of slaves in combat, this was not part of an official or condoned practice.

The arming of free blacks was not that much of a problem with some states. Louisiana had slave patrols made up entirely of free blacks. The black Confederate soldiers were most probably free men. In the eleven Confederate states there was over 132,000 free blacks but only about 16,000 were males of prime military age; North Carolina, Virginia and Louisiana having the largest populations.

So I think the issue of slaves was more the problem, not blacks.

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David Upton