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To What Extent Was Jefferson's Response To The Declaration Of Independence

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The Declaration of Independence assured that all people were "created equal," and "endowed by their Creator" with the "unalienable Rights," of "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" (Miller Center of Public Affairs)2. If this was really true, then how could a man responsible for writing the sacred words "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal" believe in his own words and yet still own slaves? (Finkelman) . Jefferson states both his opposition to the institution and his belief in the racial inferiority of blacks.
Jefferson concluded that blacks were originally from a distinct race, and that they were inferior to all whites. This result led Americans to accept the egalitarian ideas of the Declaration of Independence and racially based slavery. “All men, it would seem, were "endowed by their Creator" with natural rights, but because blacks were physically and mentally unequal, they were legitimately enslaved by whites. In a sense, the American Revolution made the scientific and racist defense of slavery necessary (Miller Center of Public Affairs) .” At the time of the American Revolution, …show more content…
Jefferson, who called the institution of slavery an “abominable crime,” was a slaveholder for all of his adult life. Successful in outlawing the international slave trade to Virginia, he was disappointed by the failure of his early efforts to end or restrict slavery, and came to believe that a practicable solution to the problem could not be found in his lifetime. As a revolutionary, he attacked slavery. As an elected politician of a divided nation, he defended it; but while considering slavery a moral travesty, hideous evil, and clearly at odds with his values Jefferson laments the immoral institution of slavery and yet describes how it must continue

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