The Founders and Slavery

[Michael McConnell]

I hope the West-Finkelman discussion does not degenerate into
personal accusation, since it has been very illuminating (at least to
me). I do not understand Paul to be "denouncing" the founding "as
unjust and anti-black," or even to be siding with radical
abolitionists, like Garrison, over more prudent and moderate
opponents of slavery. Rather, I understand him to be arguing that
Jefferson (and maybe Madison, too, though less has been said about
him) opposed even the moderate and prudent measures that might have
advanced the cause at the time.

In this connection, I am struck by the fact that no less a witness
than Alexander Stephens shares Tom's view of the founders,
criticizing them for their hostility toward slavery. Moreover, that
Jefferson supported gradual, far-off emancipation in the Western
Territories (by which I am assuming that Tom and Paul mean the
Southwest Territories, since slavery was barred from the Northwest
Territorities by unanimous vote) seems to count for something. On
that issue, would Paul concede that Jefferson was more anti-slavery
than the political consensus of the day?

On the other hand, would Tom concede that Jefferson's advice to
slaveowners, such as Edward Coles, not to manumit their slaves, was a
rather serious matter? Note that here, Jefferson cannot be excused on
the ground that he is allowing prudence or self-interest to overcome
principle; he seems to be arguing against principle.

It also seems significant to me that the party of Jefferson, even in
the North, seems to have been more pro-slavery than the party of
Washington, Adams, and Hamilton. Note that here, the Jeffersonians
cannot be excused on the ground that politics is the art of the
possible, since they were ranged on the wrong side of the possible.

Finally, like Leslie Goldstein, I am especially interested in whether
Jefferson in fact supported gradual emancipation in Virginia. Paul
and Tom seem to disagree about this, but I am unclear about the
factual basis for their disagreement. Apparently (I haven't checked),
the Jefferson papers contain a proposal for gradual emancipation. Tom
seems to infer from this that Jefferson wrote, and therefore
supported, the bill. Is that a correct inference? (Some items in the
Jefferson papers were written by other people.) Paul states that
Jefferson, as chairman of the relevant committee, prevented the bill
from going to the floor. How do we know that?

-- Michael McConnell (U of Utah)