Ajah Yee Professor Wilson African American Studies 22 November 2015 Word Count: 1200 The Declaration of Independence Affect on Black Freedom On July 4th 1776 during the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, the Declaration of Independence was issued to explain the principles and rationale to the break from the English kings ruling. The Declaration of Independence is a legal document that was originally created to establish independence for white landowners from the British Rule. During the time of the Second Continental Congress many of the thirteen colonies, especially Virginians who had aggressively sought independence, had already established their separation from King George, the English King. However, although the main reason …show more content…
Because Virginia was one of the wealthiest colonies due to the production of tobacco, wealthy and powerful slave owners wanted assurance that their interests, their slaves, were safe. The same line in the original declaration also implies that there would be no immediate or drastic change to the institution of slavery, nor would there be any legal challenges against it either. By referencing the people who are outside “a state of society,” it refers to those who were enslaved and therefore were not by colonial political or legal standards equally independent or have ownership of any rights. While the vision for some of the colonists were that the enslaved would one day work their way into society, the Declaration of Rights prevented that opportunity for enslaved blacks to ensure that white slave owners could continue profiting from owning and trading black slaves. While the idea of the Declaration of Independence ultimately gave enslaved blacks hope for their rights, independence and their freedom, this first attempt at the Virginia Declaration did not give enslaved blacks much hope for freedom and independence, but rather as a legal safety net for white slave …show more content…
Thomas Jefferson, one of the founders of the Declaration, was the second colonist to rewrite Virginia’s Declaration of Rights, and create the Declaration of Independence. Even though Jefferson owned his own slaves as well, and was not completely opposed to buying and owning slaves, he also envisioned of a society that was free and equal for everyone. That conflict left the Declaration of Independence difficult for Jefferson to write because he wanted to create a Declaration that satisfied both antislavery colonies and proslavery colonies. The two goals that Jefferson was trying to reach when he wrote the second Declaration was to justify the independence from the British rule, and to create an image for a new nation. He envisioned a new nation as one with democracy, political rights, justice, and full citizenship for all. Jefferson sought to make the beginning of the Declaration of Independence as equally appropriate for everyone. Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The Declaration of Independence was created to make the 13 colonies in America free from Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence also says that certain rights can’t be taken away from anyone. The rights that cannot be taken away from anyone are life, liberty and property. When Thomas Jefferson was writing the Declaration of Independence he planned to include a passage on slavery.
While writing the declaration the problem Thomas Jefferson was trying to address was the unjust treatment of the English colonies. For the most part, the English colonies where bullied and not given the right treatment by England. As a solution to this miss treatment Thomas Jefferson decides that the colonies should run them self as a completely separate country. Even if that means going to war. Jefferson chose the evidence he did to highlight the unfair treatment of the colonies.
One of the most remembered founding Father’s of The United States of America was Thomas Jefferson, who is famous for writing the document that declared the Colonists separation from Great Britain and independence as it’s own nation. In the original rough draft of the document Thomas Jefferson made it very clear that slavery was to be ended in the new founded nation, but the paragraph that states the freedoms and ending slavery was removed from the final draft. Even though Thomas Jefferson himself was a slave owner and held many slave workers on his plantation Monticello, he was opposed to the slave trade and disliked the effects of slavery on the Government. What was going on at the time?
In the declaration it stated the essential human rights in everyday like for the people in society. With Jefferson having a huge role in that he become to be known as one of the nation’s remarkable founding fathers alongside George Washington, John Adams, James Madison and Benjamin
Then, Thomas Jefferson was chosen to draft The Declaration of Independence because of his extensive knowledge. The Declaration of Independence created one of the most important meanings that, “all men are created equal.” Thomas Jefferson’s work, like the Declaration of Independence, got published in times of war (American Revolution), slavery, freedom issues, and more. There were a lot of conflicts during the eighteenth century like whether slavery was acceptable or not, what rights were given to men, equality, religious issues, and freedom. One of Thomas Jefferson’s goals was to give men inalienable rights (life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness).
During the writing of one of the most important historical documents, the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson made quite a few changes. The changes that he made were all for the sake of compromise and to come to an agreement among the colonies. If those changes were never made, America may not have been like we know it to be today. When you compare the original version of the Declaration of Independence to the revised version, you will come to understand why we made the changes he did. One of the most significant changes he made was completely cutting out a large section that was against the use of slavery.
It is evident that The Declaration document did not have a direct positive impact to the black struggle for justice, as it did not mention anything about slaves being entitled to those rights. However, The Declaration of Independence was an inspirational document for slave rebellions. For example, one of the first rebellions was organized in 1800 by a blacksmith Gabriel Prosser and a slave preacher Martin Prosser. Prosser brothers opposed slavery using the language of the Declaration of Independence citing the natural rights of men. (history.com, 2009)
Declaration of Independence Precis Thomas Jefferson in his historical document, The Declaration of Independence (1776), asserts that the colonies should break free from Britain’s tyranny. Jefferson supports his assertion through the use of anaphora, parallel structure, imagery, emotional appeal to patriotism, and logical appeal to the colonist’s basic rights. Jefferson’s purpose is to advocate for the separation of Britain and the colonies in order to escape the British tyranny that King George imposes on the American colonists. Jefferson writes in a measured tone for the British parliament, King George, and for colonists who have been a victim of Britain’s oppression.
The Declaration of Independence is the most influential document ever written. Although its’ main purpose was to declare separation of the 13 colonies from Britain, the document did much more. This declaration shaped the American government, defined American values, and articulated and protected our rights. In addition, the document initiated an 8-year war (the American Revolution, 1775-1783) and legitimized freedom for an incalculable number of causes for equality of race, sex, class, occupation, religion, age, and religion.
Slavery was excluded from the Declaration of Independence due to overwhelming hypocrisy throughout the colonists. Many politicians were divided on the topic, both amongst each other and themselves. They understood that plantations could not exist without a source of cheap labor, but they also understood that the basis for the Declaration of Independence was personal freedom. They realized that slavery violated the basic human right that they were fighting for, but they needed the economic stability it provided. Many politicians, like Thomas Jefferson, owned hundreds of slaves.
Thomas Jefferson wrote this document that the declared the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain were no longer under British rules. The colonies became independent states. Their purpose was to create an ideological nation because in an ideological nation the people and the government are hold together by a set of ideas. The solution that the Declaration of independence declared that all people have inalienable rights, requiring life, liberty, and
During the time the Declaration was written, slavery was a great issue among the states. Originally, Thomas Jefferson had included a passage laying into the matter of slavery in his draft of the document. It had seemed to be influenced by the views of King George as well as Lord Dunmore's 1775 Proclamation. However, it was removed before the final draft of the document was written. Jefferson's opinion on slavery and the backlash he received because of it, how Lord Dunmore's proclamation influenced this passage of the document, and how other attempts at abolition were present at the time, will be discussed in the following paragraphs to explain the reasons why Jefferson removed the matter of slavery from the draft of the Declaration.
One of the most crucial passages that were omitted in the final draft was about the foundation of the colonist’s economy: focused on slavery and how the African-Americans were treated. Many high-powered politicians were divided on the topic; some believed that the plantation system couldn’t survive without a cheap source of labor, but others realized how their newly written proclamation focused on liberty and freedom for all mankind. Jefferson included a passage in his Declaration that would make slavery impossible in America under the new changes. The hypocritical nature of Thomas Jefferson reflects the attitude of the colonists during the Revolutionary War period, while many saw that slavery violated the human rights that they were aiming to fight for, they could not continue to be economically successful without slavery, so they chose to omit a passage in the Declaration that challenged
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.
During the writing of “The Declaration of Independence”, Thomas Jefferson go to great lengths to describe why the colonies were choosing to separate themselves from Great Britain. This is done not only so readers will have a detailed description of what the American people were facing while being ruled by the King. The vivid depiction of all the cruelty he has shown towards the people. Furthermore, the lengthy, highly descriptive examination of all the wrongs and showing that the colonists made many appeals to the King but also the people of Britain that the reader now feels as if it is wrong for the Colonies to be under Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson begins by detailing the ethical standings of all people that live within the colonies.