Jeffersons Pillow Essay Example

Jeffersons Pillow Essay Who were the founders of America? When one thinks of the words ;founding fathers;, thefirst thing that should come to mind are national figures like George Washington, James Madison, George Mason and Thomas Jefferson. Although these men are founders of America, they were also founders of a social institution that would be embedded in American life for hundreds of years. This social institution is otherwise known as slavery. In the book Jefferson;s Pillow by Roger Wilkins, Wilkins discusses the real truth about the founders and the founding of the nation. The standard story about the founding of the nation has been told millions of times, but there is always one major part of the story that is left out. The voices that are never heard are the voices of blacks in the society of the new nation. The pages of millions of history books are filled with the success of whites, but there always seem to be blank pages that should contain the story of the contribution of blacks. This fact upsets many blacks today and ultimately results in the death of black patriotism. The idea that blacks never existed is due to the fact that Washington, Madison, Mason, and Jefferson were trying to erase history while they were writing it. In order for blacks to gain patriotism and ;to understand who we are, we must probe more deeply into who these four [men] were.;(Wilkins 10) George Washington is known as thefirst father of the country, but should really be thought of as thefirst man to erase the writing on the blackboard. He was a man of many advantages and great success. Washington is always applauded and praised for the work he did for the country, but many do not know or choose to ignore the other side of this man. His other side was faced with a struggle dealing with ideas on slavery. For example, Washington desperately needed men to fight, but refused to let the twenty percent of the black population fight. It is natural