Thomas Jefferson
Of all the US Presidents who were pro-slavery, Thomas Jefferson had around 600 slaves throughout his life. As with James K. Polk, Jefferson was publicly against the institution, calling it a horrible thing, but that didn’t stop him from having slaves work for him. He grew increasingly cautious as the practice spread throughout American culture.
He thought the institution would ultimately lead to division in the country, but he also regarded the future liberation of slaves as a risk to the life of the precarious nation.
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One Response
In order to understand why these presidents were pro-slavery, we must go back to the customs of the times. Those who were rich & powerful could do anything they wanted, & the law looked the other way. Slavery was an accepted institution. Not all slaves were treated badly, most had kind masters who gave them food & shelter, albeit of low quality. They worked long hours, & were exhausted at the end of a 12-hour day. The white non-slave were not much better off, working long hours for little pay, living in squalor. If a white worker got injured or died, nobody cared for the family. Corruption & bribery were rampant. Congressmen & Presidents often took bribes, or participated in crooked schemes to enrich themselves. Regretably, not much has changed!