Supporters of a plan to build a national ­memorial for African-Americans who fought for independence in the American Revolution, many of them enlisting from communities south of Boston, are hailing the recent passage of a federal bill approving the project.

The proposed memorial was included as an amendment to a defense spending bill approved by Congress and signed by President Obama earlier this month. It authorized the nonprofit ­National Mall Liberty Fund to establish a memorial near the mall to honor the African-Americans who fought for the United States during the ­Revolution, described by Liberty Fund founder Maurice Barboza as “the forgotten soldiers, patriots, and freedom seekers of the Revolutionary War.”