Americans Are in Desperate Need of a Lesson on the History of Slavery

[Geee]

American Thinker

Democrat hopeful Pete Buttigieg recently advocated removing Thomas Jefferson's memory from the public square and ending the practice of naming public events in his honor.  The legacy of Jefferson, he said, is "problematic."  "There's a lot to admire in his thinking and his philosophy," he said, "but then again if you plunge into his writings, especially his notes on the state of Virginia, you know that he knew slavery was wrong."

It's a stunning display of his ignorance, certainly.  But interestingly, Buttigieg has unknowingly pinpointed precisely why Thomas Jefferson should be eternally revered by our society, which believes that enslaving other human beings is wrong.

That is, that Jefferson knew that it was wrong at the time. 

Thomas Sowell explains, brilliantly as ever:

Of all the tragic facts about the history of slavery, the most astonishing to an American today is that, although slavery was a worldwide institution for thousands of years, nowhere in the world was slavery a controversial issue prior to the 18th century[.] ...

 

Everyone hated the idea of being a slave but few had any qualms about enslaving others.  Slavery was just not an issue, not even among intellectuals, much less among political leaders, until the 18th century — and only then in Western civilization.

Among those who turned against slavery in the 18th century were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and other American leaders.  You could research all of 18th century Africa or Asia or the Middle East without finding any comparable rejection of slavery there.

[Valin]

@Geee

1. The Founders/Framers all knew slavery was bad. Thing is thou, they didn't know what to do about it. It's one thing to sit here in the 21st century and judge them, its quite another thing to put yourself in their shoes.

2. Yes we in the West had slaves, but the really amazing thing is we ended slavery...not the Chinese...Not the Aztecs...not the Persians...We Did.