Hypocrisy In The Declaration Of Independence
The words of Thomas Jefferson from the Declaration of Independence marked the beginning of a nation, and the birth of the United States of America. The basis of the Declaration was based on the idea of freedom, where “all men are created equal.” However, by today’s standards, the Declaration of Independence has many controversial points. One of them concerns the topic over slavery, where there have been many disagreements between the current interpretations and the views of our founding fathers hundreds of years ago. Many have argued that hypocrisy evidently exists in the words written in the Declaration. “The Constitution and Slavery” pointed this out by stating that “Yet at the time these words were written, more than 500,000 black Americans were slaves. Jefferson himself owned more than 100.” This shows that even though Jefferson insisted on the idea of “all men are created equal,” some can say that he is a hypocrite. “How could somebody make such a statement while they are doing the same devilish act?” must have gone through the minds of those questioning Jefferson’s sincerity. Indeed, he did commit those acts. According to Paul …show more content…
Jefferson’s intention of freeing slaves was not as heroic as many had thought, but it is one of the first stepping stones that would eventually guide the country’s objective. Although there is evident hypocrisy in the passage, progressivism of ideas takes time. One could not expect a sudden change of people’s thoughts and perspectives overnight. Thus, following the basis of “all men are created equal”, through many fights and revolutions, black people after rigorous efforts had stood up and proved that they are as equal as any other people. Therefore, the mission of today’s society is to preserve the hard-fought equality among all races and the independence of our
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