What makes Thomas Jefferson so controversial? - Frank Cogliano
He was part of America's fight
for freedom and equality.
But were his enlightened principles
outweighed
by participation in a greater injustice?
Find out on History versus
Thomas Jefferson.
Order! Order! Hey, that’s one
of the guys from Mt. Rushmore.
Ahem. This is Thomas Jefferson,
founding father of the United States
of America
and primary author
of the Declaration of Independence.
The document that established
the US as a democratic republic
on the principle that everyone
is created equal.
If by “everyone” you mean
property-owning white men.
At the time Jefferson was writing,
one fifth of the colonies’ population
was enslaved.
Surely he couldn’t be expected
to single-handedly overturn
the institution of slavery?
Couldn’t he have just written
that into the Declaration?
It wasn’t that simple, Your Honor.
Jefferson was one of five authors,
and the document had to be ratified
by the Continental Congress.
He included a clause opposing
the slave trade,
but state delegates removed it.
Nevertheless, Jefferson recognized
slavery as an immoral institution
and condemned it throughout his life.
But Jefferson’s words never came close
to matching his actions!
As Virginia’s governor, he did nothing
to change the state slave laws.
And in his personal life,
he held over 600 people in slavery.
Furthermore, he believed Black people
were intellectual inferiors who,
if emancipated, should return
to their countries of origin.
Frankly, there’s no argument that
Jefferson did anything significant
to combat slavery.
It’s true, Your Honor.
But Jefferson did make
important contributions
to religious, financial,
and gender equality.
He led the charge for separating
church and state,
removing government funding
for Virginia’s Anglican Church,
and paving the way for our modern
understanding of religious freedom.
Jefferson also drafted laws that weakened
the power of inherited wealth
and pushed for the state-funded education
of boys and girls.
All valuable reforms, but you’re avoiding
the fundamental issue here.
None of this benefited enslaved people
or Indigenous Americans,
and it’s ridiculous to argue
that Jefferson was pursuing equality
when his policies frequently harmed
non-white groups.
Policies such as authorizing the military
to exterminate Indigenous communities
during the Revolutionary War.
Objection! Those Northwestern tribes were
allied with the British.
In peacetime, Jefferson did his best
to avoid conflict with Native Americans
and believed they could be equal
to whites.
“Could be equal”? Listen to yourself!
Are you defending his attempts to forcibly
assimilate Indigenous communities?
Jefferson’s recommendations
even formed the basis
for the Indian Removal Act years later.
Recommendations? Why not laws?
Thomas Jefferson served as a diplomat
and Secretary of State
before being elected as Vice President
under John Adams in 1796.
A role in which he undermined
the President’s authority.
Jefferson argued that states
should have the power
to overrule federal laws
they deemed unconstitutional—
an argument some Southern states
would cite while seceding
from the Union 70 years later.
I think it’s a little unreasonable to lay
the entire Civil War at Jefferson’s feet.
Besides, his defense of states’
rights was motivated
by the president’s overreaching
central government.
As part of Adams’ preparations
for war with France,
he signed legislation that tightened
restrictions on immigrants
and limited criticism of the government.
Jefferson was just trying
to protect the public.
And ultimately, his efforts were
so popular that he was elected
as the next president.
A dubious victory.
He only won because states were allowed
to count enslaved people
towards their population without giving
them voting rights.
This system gave states that held people
in slavery additional voting power
in the Electoral College
until the Civil War.
Be that as it may,
Jefferson was a popular president.
He worked to prevent the country
from taking on too much debt,
and successfully led the US through the
Napoleonic and the Barbary Wars.
Plus, he dramatically expanded
the country’s territory
through the Louisiana Purchase.
Where he once again failed to stop
slavery from taking hold.
I’ll remind you that President Jefferson
signed a law
forbidding the importation
of enslaved people in 1807.
And yet he continued to enslave those
already on American soil—
including his own flesh and blood.
Pardon?
Following his wife's death,
Jefferson began a relationship with her
half-sister and maid, Sally Hemings.
Jefferson fathered six children
with Hemings
and kept the entire relationship secret,
while continuing to publicly denounce
the personhood of Black Americans.
Jefferson freed several members
of the Hemings family,
including his children with Sally—
While refusing to free anyone else.
Despite enslaving over 600 people,
Jefferson only freed 10.
Five during his life and five in his will—
all members of the Hemings family.
Even I have to admit,
this seems indefensible.
It’s true, Your Honor.
Despite pursuing what he believed
to be equality,
Jefferson failed to uphold his own ideals.
Ultimately, he was a man of his time—
living in an economy that relied
on exploitation and enslaved labor.
That’s hardly a defense when many
of Jefferson’s contemporaries
opposed slavery and took action
to abolish it.
Even if some people considered
him a great man in his time,
he doesn’t have to be an icon in ours.
Well, I hear Mount Rushmore has
a problematic past, too.
Can we judge historical figures
by modern standards?
And what responsibilities do
powerful people have to the future?
Answering these questions is all part
of putting history on trial.
