DISCLAIMER: Slavery and race are sensitive topics, and it is not my intent to begin a debate or discuss issues these issues with a negative undertone. Also, I am not a historian or any type of expert on American history, but I do try to learn what I can about our history and how we, as people and as a country, have grown and matured into what we are today. I know there is ample room for improvement, but I believe our country has taken massive steps in the past 200+ years.
Last night, my friend Lauren and I ventured into DC for an educational lecture at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Annette Gordon-Reed, the author of The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family, was interviewed by NPR’s host Michel Martin.
I had heard rumors that TJ had relations with the slaves at Monticello. I also think he was/is the only President to be unmarried while in office. (He was widowed. Sad.) That being said, I also know that he traveled up and down the East Coast and across the Atlantic for business. Regardless of his travels, his home, Monticello, was a functioning plantation. Plantations require many, many hands and many, many skilled individuals. It is no surprise that he owned slaves to work the land. What is surprising, to me at least, is his intimate relationships with these slaves. This lecture mostly discussed his relationships with the slave families and his treatment toward these people while advocating against slavery.
As I mentioned, I don’t know too much about TJ and I am hesitant to pass judgment on what type of man he really was. Of course he was smart and hard working – these are not the characteristics in which I crave to understand. My thirst lies in his true personality. Was he honest? Did he truly care about the slaves? If so, why? Was he really promoting an anti-slavery movement because he believed the actions were unethical or because he cared about the people he (literally) owned? Ms. Gordon-Reed did shed some light on my questions, but I am eager to read her book and visit Monticello.
Today, I begin reading this book. I hope to learn about what I can about TJ and the workers on his land. I also hope to visit his home, which is only about 3 hours from here. What I do know is that I love living a city that values our country’s legacy and makes an honest effort to display and educate the citizens about our past. I believe it would be a personal disservice if I do not involve myself in the various opportunities offered around the Beltway. I am glad I attended the lecture, but even more thrilled to learn about a subject that is left out of history books and rarely discussed.
Happy reading. Happy learning!
Hey, so I have a book pertaining to this subject called Clotel. My edition was edited by Dr. Robert Levine, an English professor at UMD. I never did the reading for class, but it's about Jefferson and a daughter that he may have had with a slave. I'll bring it to you the next time I come over.
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