Recently, you made comments in an attempt to “fact check” First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention. In your comments, you concurred with Mrs. Obama’s statement that the White House was indeed built by slaves, but then you proceeded to state that the slaves were “well fed, and had decent lodging”.
As you purport yourself to be a student of history, it is unfortunate that you did not take the opportunity to educate your viewers on the realities of slavery. You seem, based on your comments, to be implying that slavery really wasn’t that bad, especially if the slave was lucky enough to work at the White House. First off, I am not quite sure where got your facts, because there is no documentation to say that the slaves who performed this task were in fact well fed and housed. There was no “menu” circa 1800 documenting what and how much slaves ate. Additionally, Abigail Adams, who resided in the White House during the latter stages of construction, debunks this assertion in one of her letters, stating “but it is true Republicanism that drive the Slaves half fed, and destitute of cloathing, to labour, whilst the owner waches about Idle, tho his one Slave is all the property he can boast” (emphasis added).
Read the rest here.
The pro-slavery movement in the decades before the Emancipation claimed slaves were happier than free black men or the destitute of Europe who were immigrating into the U.S. Dylann Roof, famous for his walking into an A.M.E. church and shooting the people there, published in his manifesto echoes of this which is typical of Confederate fanboys. His love for this white supremacist thinking is what galvanized people to pull down the Confederate flags.
The correction was dog whistle politics understood by those people.
Couldn’t agree more. I tried not to be over the top and accuse him of implying African Americans were better during slavery — even though I know that’s what he meant! Thanks for stopping by 😃