Once heralded as “The Defender of the Rights of Man”, Jefferson is now ironically regarded by some as nothing more than a slave owning racist, and oppressor of human freedom. These contrasting points of view beg the question, who was this man really? And what is the true legacy that he left behind? This paper will attempt to prove with original sources that Jefferson’s legacy should be as an American Moses for the once enslaved African-American community. More specifically, Jefferson’s political writings were the catalyst needed to bring about their eventual and long overdue
Once heralded as “The Defender of the Rights of Man”, Jefferson is now ironically regarded by some as nothing more than a slave owning racist, and oppressor of human freedom. These contrasting points of view beg the question, who was this man really? And what is the true legacy that he left behind? This paper will attempt to prove with original sources that Jefferson’s legacy should be as an American Moses for the once enslaved African-American community. More specifically, Jefferson’s political writings were the catalyst needed to bring about their eventual and long overdue