Democratic Presidential candidate for 2020, Pete Buttigieg produced some headlines in a recent interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. Hewitt asked Buttigieg about whether “Jefferson-Jackson Dinners” should be renamed since both men owned slaves. Buttigieg responded, “Yeah we’re doing that in Indiana. I think it’s the right thing to do. You know, over time, you develop and evolve on the things you choose to honor.” Now, it is fair to point out that many on the right side of the aisle looked at those comments and attacked him for essentially wanting to erase Jefferson from history. As we’ll see in a moment, this is not what Buttigieg was claiming. However, this still raises a good question. Because of Jefferson’s ownership of slaves; should we continue to give him the honor and respect he tends to receive? I believe there are two things to consider when answering this question.
The first one was actually made by Buttigieg in that same interview where he continued, “Jefferson’s more problematic. You know there’s a lot to, of course, admire in his thinking and his philosophy. Then again, as you plunge into his writings, especially the notes on the state of Virginia, you know that he knew that slavery was wrong. And yet he did it. Now we’re all morally conflicted human beings. And it’s not like we’re blotting him out of the history books.” Buttigieg just made a great point as to why dinners named after Jefferson shouldn’t be renamed.
In 1820, Thomas Jefferson wrote to U.S. Rep. from Maine John Holmes and said of slavery, “There is not a man on earth who would sacrifice more than I would, to relieve us from this heavy reproach.” In his original draft of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson openly condemned King George for his part in the slave trade, stating, “He has waged a cruel war against human nature itself, violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in the persons of a distant people who never offended him, captivating and carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere…” In reference to slavery, Jefferson also said, “I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever.” Jefferson also attempted to pursue “decent” treatment of his slaves in Monticello writing, “My first wish is that the laborers may be well treated.” However, this obviously didn’t always occur. How Jefferson could say these things and still own slaves is something that I can’t fully comprehend. The best that I can think is similar to what Pete Buttigieg pointed out. And that is that we are human beings. No human being is perfect. The contradiction in words and deeds may be best explained that way. While this is no excuse for his ownership of slaves, it shows that Jefferson certainly had his own qualms with slavery, and to say otherwise is dishonest. Realizing that men aren’t perfect leads into my second point.
America was founded upon a set of “self-evident” truths laid out in the Declaration of Independence where it states, “…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.” While America certainly hasn’t fully lived up to those principles throughout our history, I don’t think we’ve ever really thought that we have. Rather, we realize, that is the goal we are striving for. Our Constitution is meant to limit government and ensure that people are given the chance to be free and prosper. As a nation we must continue striving to ensure that America stays on that course. This includes being a well-informed citizen and trying our best to live by the values and principles America was founded on.
So while Buttigieg is correct that Jefferson had flaws, let’s end with several key questions. Do we focus on the flaws of Jefferson, or do we see them but realize that it is far more important to observe and honor the principles and ideals men like Jefferson founded this nation upon? Is there another nation that has lived up to those principles better than America? (I think you’ll be hard pressed to find one.) Also, if Jefferson shouldn’t be erased from history because he is deserving of honor for his ideals; why erase him from your dinner? I think people understand that slavery is bad and that the dinner doesn’t honor Jefferson for that particular aspect of his life. Rather, we should continue to honor Jefferson for the ideals and values we have looked at. However, that leads to a bigger question. As we look at their platform and values; can Buttigieg’s party even celebrate the ideals and values of life and liberty that Jefferson wrote about?
Isaac Hadam is an 18 year old who writes and speaks about the U.S. Constitution. He is the Vice-President of the Constitutional Awareness Pact, has written for the Conway Daily Sun, and is a contributing writer to the Weirs Times. For more info please visit www.constitutionalawarenesspact.webs.com.
