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Despite the fact that most American politicians knew the incarceration of blacks against their will was unreasonable, unjust, dishonorable and morally inadequate, the notion of white-supremacy allowed slavery to become one of the single biggest components of American society throughout the country's' infant years. Simply put, these commonly commemorated political leaders were white supremacists who were unwilling to give up their first-class rank in society, or to consider African Americans as being equal members of their society. If one of these men did happen to question slavery, it was merely to insure the economic prosperity of the country as a whole, and not to secure the civil liberties of African Americans. This truth can best be seen in the personal writings of one of the most celebrated figures in American history. This man was the third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson.
While the majority of America's early political leaders were racist, or at least bias, there were a few notable exceptions. One of the most prominent people to speak out against the institution of slavery was writer and editor William Lloyd Garrison. William Lloyd Garrison spent his entire social and political career fighting for the termination of slavery. While the misconception that Jefferson was an outright abolitionist has given him much unwarranted praise, Garrison rarely ever gets the recognition he deserves. The difference between the vaguely remembered, barely venerated Garrison and the time-honored Jefferson lies in their true positions on slavery. Garrison was a staunch opponent of slavery who decried its practice for moral reasons. On the other hand, Jefferson was conflicted on the issue, and much of his personal writing suggests that he was more of an
advocate of slavery than an opponent of slavery. In fact, Thomas Jefferson even owned slaves of his own. .
It is often thought that Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States, was one of the most brilliant and compassionate men to have ever contributed to the formation and progression of the United States government. Many uninformed people around the country refer to him as a leading abolitionist of his time period. Unfortunately, this sad misconception could not be further from the truth. Actually, his striking views on the relations between blacks and whites were very different from those of a true abolitionist.
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First of all, Jefferson believed that there was a natural difference in appearance and quality between the black and white races. "Whether the black of the Negro resides in the reticular membrane between the skin and scarf-skin, or in the scarf skin itself; whether it proceeds form the colour of the bible, or from that of some other secretion, the difference is fixed in nature, and is as real as if its seat and cause were known to us" (Ellis 7). This shocking viewpoint was found in Jefferson's own personal writings. This was his response to the question asking why slaves shouldn't be freed and allowed to become equal members of society. His response proves that unlike most abolitionists of his time period, he was quite comfortable with the idea of white supremacy in American society.
Also, Jefferson answered the question of "why not free the blacks?" in an extremely blunt fashion. He proposed an argument that he felt would forever prove that an American society with slavery is more viable than American society with blacks and whites living as together as equals. He felt that the blacks would hold a grudge against the whites for their prior enslavement and abuse of the blacks. Jefferson asserted that if the blacks were ever freed, racial tensions and prejudices between the whites and blacks would flare and eventually, there would be an all-out race war. . He believed that one of the two races, white or black would be eradicated from the planet. "Deep rooted prejudices entertained by the whites; ten thousand recollections, by the blacks, of the injuries they have sustained; new provocations; the real distinctions which nature has made; and many other circumstances, will divide us into parties, and produce convulsions, which will probably never end but in the extermination of the one or the other race" (Mullin 01). In his twisted mind, this war was inevitable unless the African Americans were enslaved for eternity.
Secondly, Thomas Jefferson's idea of white supremacy was far more sophisticated than it seems at a first, cursory glance. Jefferson actually believed that the blacks were keeping themselves incarcerated. He felt that blacks did not perform well enough in the areas of common sense, responsibility, trustworthiness, and loyalty. He asserted that their overall inferiority, due to their "difference of coulour", kept them from being freed. "This unfortunate difference of colour, and perhaps of faculty, is a powerful obstacle to the emancipation of these people" (Ellis, 10). This concept, the notion that it was actually the blacks' own inadequacy that kept them enslaved, was perhaps, the most disgusting of all. This is the concept that does the most damage to Jefferson's legacy as a great, compassionate, and sensitive man. He can no longer be looked at with the same admiration. He mentioned this same fundamental concept in a journal entry once. In it he summarized his views at that particular point in time of his life. "To our reproach it must be said, that though for a century and a half we have had under our eyes the races of black and of red men, they have never yet been viewed by us as subjects of natural history" (Morgan 6)
Furthermore, he feared giving the slaves liberty because it was uncertain to him what they would do with it. He imagined that if the slaves were ever freed, that there could very well be a role reversal. He feared that eventually, being just and fair, would allow the blacks to enslave the whites. He assumed, that if given the chance, the blacks would take this opportunity. "Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just that his justice cannot sleep for ever that considering numbers, nature and natural means only, a revolution of the wheel of fortune, an exchange of situation is among possible events that it may become probable by supernatural interference!" (Ellis 10) His admission that "God is just" and will eventually give the African Americans the strength to break from their bondage, proves that he knew slavery was morally wrong. Since he believed God was always morally accurate, he believed that God would have been morally correct to free the blacks. Therefore, deep within himself, he believed and knew that slavery was morally inadequate. This conflicted state, characterized most of the political leaders of early America.
William Lloyd Garrison was possibly the most uncompromising, dedicated, passionate, fanatical, and devoted abolitionist during his time period. He hated slavery
from the time he was a young man, to his untimely death many years later. He made his life-long goals clear very early in his career. He was founder and chief editor of The Liberator, the first anti-slavery newspaper. In the very first issue of The Liberator, he made some of the most outlandish comments of his era. Essentially, William Lloyd Garrison pledged his unwavering devotion for the rest of his life to fighting the establishment of slavery. "I do not wish to think, or speak, or write with moderation…I am in earnest…I will not equivocate…I will not excuse…I will not retreat a single inch…and I will be heard" (Essig 7).
From then on, he was known around the country as a staunch opponent of slavery who was willing to do anything to get his point across. "He publicly burned the copy of a constitution, which he viewed as a pro-slavery document" (Essig 8). To him slavery was a moral embarrassment to the United States of America. His heart ached for the hundreds of thousands of innocent people in captivity. His views became more radical over time, and once he even called for the North to secede from the slave-holding south. Eventually, people got tired of his radicalism and he lost a lot of his political influence. Despite the constant over-zealousness and extremism present in his views, he was the single most feared, redoubtable, and respected abolitionist of his time. William Lloyd Garrison was the true abolitionist during colonial America, not the conflicted Thomas Jefferson.
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