What Led Up To The Declaration Of Independence

The beginnings of our nation can be traced back to a single document in which America declared its independence from the motherland of Britain. The Declaration of Independence was crafted by a “Committee of Five,” including one our Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson. In this document and in the colonies’ efforts to break away from England, the underlying theme and motive was that “all men are created equal” and that all “are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.” The motherland had been busy fighting in the Seven Years War and in return the colonies were treated with “salutary neglect;” however, once the war was over England looked to her colonies to solve the massive war debt that was accumulated. The colonies experienced
Once the colonies had successfully gained their independence, our Founding Fathers had the intentions of creating a nation that did not repeat the same inequalities experienced with Britain. This ideal that “all men are created equal” was written in the Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson, who in his lifetime owned hundreds of slaves. How could a highly respected leader and politician write these famous words while his actions directly contradicted them? While Jefferson believed that slavery was wrong, he remained involved with the system of slavery in order to avoid disrupting America’s fragile development and also to maintain order in his personal and professional
Jefferson’s words and actions are quite confusing as he believed that blacks were inferior although he had relations with one of his slaves. He writes that “all men are created equal” and eventually shows some effort to abolish slavery, while owning hundreds of his own slaves. Jefferson had the power to push America towards a nation absent of slavery, but instead remained a supporter of the system that gave the new country, and himself, a chance to economically prosper. The country’s fragile state and Jefferson’s personal and professional life can provide a slight understanding of why Jefferson wrote the the renowned phrase “all men are created equal” while allowing and practicing slavery. Although Jefferson did not have the ability to snap his fingers and immediately abolish slavery, he did have the authority and influence to progressively promote an America without the immoralities of