Thomas Jefferson Was A Hypocrite

Thomas Jefferson did not believe in racial equality, and thought that blacks were intellectually inferior. However in one of the most important documents in American history is the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson himself, he says ”We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by there creator...” Jefferson knew that his ownership of slaves contradicted his principles. What Jefferson wanted most was for slaves to one day be free, he wanted them to go back to Africa. He refused to grant freedom to his own slaves because of their significances to his wealth, but overall he condemned slavery.

Thomas Jefferson once wrote that all men were created equal; however, he owned and sold slaves for profit. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, ran for election in 1800 and started the Jeffersonian Revolution with his election. Jefferson was a Republican who won the office from the previous Federalist president, John Adams. With his fresh presidency, Jefferson sought out to further limit the Federal Governments power and to give more democracy to the people. Jefferson believed in many things as a Republican and as a human, but his life-time and presidency oftentimes portrayed the opposite of his founding beliefs. These contradictions that Jefferson illustrated during his years showed a representation of not only American history, but even what it means to be human.

    The Declaration of Independence states “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men 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. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men,

Throughout Jefferson’s notes, Jefferson goes on to explain that he understands that the very concept of slavery goes against his philosophy in which he instilled into the Declaration of Independence. As one of the father of our nation, we the people should expect our leaders to uphold certain standards when it comes to human rights of their vary nation. To quote our fathering document, the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men 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…” This however, brings up the point on whether or not Jefferson viewed the African slaves as “all men.” In the excerpt from his notes, Jefferson discusses that he believes that slavery should not exist but he also believed that once a slave is free, he or she can no longer live in the same society as one who which they have slaved for.

It is his attitude towards equality. After all, he is the author of one of the most known quotations in the United States history: "all men are created equal", which has since been regarded as a trademark phrase and used in democratic constitutions and related human rights instruments. Thomas Jefferson put this phrase in the Declaration of Independence that he was asked to write. Along with it he also argued for the abolition of slavery in new American territories and included an attack on King George III for slave trade . However, it was deleted from the first draft of the Declaration when slave-owning patriots objected.

Thomas Jefferson, in his inaugural address, stated that America was, “A rising nation, spread over a wide and fruitful land, traversing all the seas with the rich productions of their industry…advancing rapidly to the destinies beyond the reach of mortal eye...” He was a strong believer in the progressive nature of morality and held an optimistic view of the nature of humanity and human ability. Jefferson believed that all people were equally naturally endowed with the ability to determine right and wrong regardless of their status, and belief that gave him a foundation for his support of democracy. Jefferson believed that since all men had this judgement naturally gifted to them, they were capable of selecting the correct people to lead them and the nation would flourish with liberty. Jefferson’s optimistic faith in human nature and the democratic ideals he formed around its principles guaranteed the future liberty of the United States.

In transitioning, from starting with the fact that Jefferson had tried to mess with the government, Thomas Jefferson had slaves during his time of presidency as well. Now for a president that says “all men are created equally.” why would he have slaves? As president for citizens that live in the land of the free and home of the brave, holding slaves captive from said freedom is going against one of United States decisions which is that we all have freedom. Making this another addition to why Jefferson did not live up to the ideals and beliefs.

Paris, France. January 26, 1788 Jefferson writes a letter to Edward Bancroft saying that “giving liberty to slaves would be like abandoning children.” It would be like abandoning children because slaves have never been taught how to do anything but work so it would be unlikely for them to get jobs and make money. So, this is saying that Jefferson cares about his slaves. "Therefore, Thomas Jefferson is not a hypocrite because he wants slavery to end and, he believes it's an awful thing. When he wrote the declaration of independence he did not know African Americans were capable of learning, but once he was exposed to it, his opinion changed. Jefferson wants nothing more than to end slavery and he would do anything to make that possible.

Thomas Jefferson is a man who really needs no introduction. He was recognized as a luminous writer who was appointed to draft the Declaration of Independence. Congress formally approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Jefferson owned many slaves that worked for him. He would often even sell his slaves to buy others. Why then would he write in the Declaration of Independence, “all men are created equal”? Is it possible that Thomas Jefferson was a hypocrite and only wrote what the population wanted to see? Did Thomas Jefferson enjoy owning slaves just as his other wealthy peers did? Neither one of those is true. Thomas Jefferson thought slavery was morally wrong and he thought that it should be abolished. We will take a

Thomas Jefferson was an educated Republican and like many politicians today he made some empty promises and did not really portray what he stood for. In my opinion I agree with Henry Adams criticism that Jefferson and his party said one thing and did another. Jefferson and the his republican party won the white house. Before his presidency he expressed his views to be a strict constructionist.

Just because Thomas Jefferson was famous for being true and honest does not mean he was. He was known to be a great person but he did some stuff that made people dislike him. He wrote in the Declaration of Independence that “All men are created equal”, but Jefferson only said that, he did not really think this way.

First, in the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson wrote “all men are created equally” but many of his actions did not support that statement. He owned many slaves throughout his lifetime, enslaving nearly 600 human beings. Many people believe that Thomas Jefferson was a hypocrite. He described slavery as a “cruel war

"All men are created equal"(Jefferson 256). Wilson wonders why Jefferson was being hypocritical. How was Jefferson being a hypocrite? According to Wilson 's research, Thomas Jefferson had many slaves working for him. Maybe it was easier to get many tasks accomplished with owning slaves? It might be easier, but what about the torture they had to go through? Jefferson stated that King George III was against slavery and the process of holding slaves. "Captivating & carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere, or to incur miserable death in their transportation thither"(Jefferson 258). Humans treated other humans like animals for decades. If Jefferson

Hypocrite is the person who pretends to have certain values and principles but in reality, he doesn't owe them. Despite all their efforts, I don’t think that the founding father was sincere in their efforts to abolish slavery from America. In his Notes on the State of Virginia, Jefferson discussed that the black slaves, who got freedom, should leave Virginia because of the strong racial differences between

Jefferson is going against his own words in the Declaration of Independence stating that “all men are created equal.” When the Declaration was being written, Jefferson