As the nation prepares to mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, former President Barack Obama is sparking an online social media frenzy after an interview where he both acknowledged the Founding Fathers’ “genius” while also noting the “deep flaw” in the men who allowed slavery to continue.
During an interview, Obama praised the Founders’ “genius” while also acknowledging what he called the “profound, deep flaw” of allowing slavery to continue as the nation was formed.
The remarks came during a sit-down with MS NOW on Sunday, June 28. Obama argued that the issue is not an either-or proposition.
“I think sometimes we get confused in thinking that these two stories are completely separate. They’re intertwined, which is why it’s possible for me to be a great admirer of George Washington and also acknowledge he was a slaveholder,” the popular two-term president explained.
“And that does not negate his greatness. It simply acknowledges that there’s a profound, deep flaw in these Founding Fathers, who were also geniuses and gave us these tools, which is true of all of us, right?” Obama, who is a reportedly a 12th cousin of Washington eight times removed.
“It’s true of every president that we’re this mixed bag,” Obama noted, before adding. “We’ve got contradictions and embody the country’s contradictions.”
Social media erupted with both supporters and opponents weighing in on Obama’s characterization of Washington.
From “Just stfu, phuckin’ dipsh-t” to “Obama is acting like Washington had black people in chains, being whipped. Not the case.”
It actually is the case. Washington, while revered for his role in helping found the country, at one point owned more than 300 slaves at his Mount Vernon estate in northern Virginia.
As Mother Jones reported, Washington was an active slaveholder, often buying, selling, and renting enslaved labor. While president and living in Philadelphia, he moved his enslaved staff out of Pennsylvania every six months so they wouldn’t qualify for freedom under the state’s Gradual Abolition Act. Washington was also a signer of the 1793 Fugitive Slave Act.
Others on social media tried to justify slavery as an institution “present in every single society the world over since the beginning of time up to Washington’s day” and claiming that “white people” abolished it.
“When Washington was alive, slavery was known throughout the world. Even some blacks owned slaves. And there are nations today that still practice slavery. Obama pretends that he would be different if he were alive back then,” this X user stated.
Others expressed frustration with the conversation. “Somebody, please take the Mike away from this man!
Another X user proclaimed, “We can’t get anywhere as a nation if we insist on re-litigating the past over and over and over. Be it 250 years ago or 150 years ago or 50 years ago, it’s in the past. Worry about the present,”
On the flip side plenty of posters applauded Obama’s clear-eyed take on the dichotomy of the founders.
“Well said by President Obama,” X user Gatorfan15 extolled.
And this commenter might have said it best, “I wish every American could reconcile our contradictory history with so much grace.
After the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 it would take another 89 years to end slavery under the 13th Amendment after the Civil War.
