"Was _______ a hero or hypocrite?" could be asked about almost any figure in history. Human beings are complicated creatures who live amid conflicting situations. Rarely do you find anyone who is totally consistent in every point of view they hold and every action that they take.

In the case of Thomas Jefferson, the "hero or hypocrite" question tends to focus on his ideals, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence (which he authored), that all people "are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" -- as contrasted with the fact that Jefferson owned hundreds of slaves and fathered several children by Sally Hemings, one of his slaves.

Jefferson indeed was heroic as one of America's founding fathers to set this nation on a course of liberty and justice for all. But slavery was deeply embedded in the colonies and not something easily or quickly undone. Jefferson's slaves were those which he had inherited from his father or acquired by marriage to his wife, Martha (whose family also owned slaves). Jefferson had criticized the British for sponsoring the slave trade. He also led the effort to have the state of Virginia ban the importing of slaves in 1778. Jefferson did have plans for the emancipating of slaves, seen in a bill he proposed as governor of Virginia in 1779, but recommended emancipation as a gradual process due to the complexities of the situation.

So, "hero or hypocrite"? The answer to that is not quick or easy. Jefferson had ideas and plans to address the slavery situation, but recognized the need to proceed gradually in order to make such a transition without great turmoil affecting the new country.

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4 years ago