"Hello members of Town Hall. My name is George Washington, I was born February 22nd, 1732. I have had slaves my entire life and my view on slavery has evolved as I have aged but today I am here to convince you why it is necessary for the growth of our country. When I was younger living in Virginia and working in the tobacco business along side my father, slavery was something that I relied on heavily. Virginia is best known for our supply in tobacco and how fast we were able to grow, harvest, and sell it. My father passed away when I was eleven years old and I inherited 280 acres of land as well as the slaves that my father had. Having slaves was the only way I was able keep the legacy of my father alive as well as grow my reputation in Virginia. Without slavery the economy would become much weaker then what it already is. Slaves are the foundation of the tobacco and cotton industry.
Those two industries are what is keeping the economy afloat and why America is making money. Slavery doesn’t only benefit the master, but also benefits the slave. Slaves are given a place to live, food to eat, are able to care for themselves, and at Mount Vernon they have the freedom of religion. Slavery gives African Americans somewhere to call home as well as providing a service to their country by helping our economy thrive. Slavery also takes the labor pressures off of the lower class of white people which helps our country move froward as well.
The South where we rely on slave labor as the foundation of the economy, without it, the cotton economy would collapse, as well as the tobacco industry. Our society could not function and thrive to the potential it could without slavery and that is not what we want the future of America to look like.
An America without slavery is an America that does not progress as a country. We left Europe to build something new. To build a new democracy, a new economy, and a new country. Slavery gives us the opportunity to do something that has never been done, a chance to make history. God and the Bible permit us to do this and as Americans it is our duty to succeed on our own.
Slavery not only gives us free labor but gives us the chance to focus on other issues that come with running a country. Slaves give us what we need and that is growing an economy through the labor that they provide. Without it, America will not progress to its true potential."
George Washington is one of the most well known people in America’s history. Above were his views on slavery, but that is not how history sees Washington and that is because after the Revolutionary War and after being elected President his views changed. For my town hall debate, I described all of the reasons why Washington supported slavery, but that is not the full story of our First President. Later in his life, Washington freed all of his slaves in his will, decided that slavery wasn’t good for the economy, and how morally wrong slavery really was.
George Washington grew up where slavery was just a part of his life. He grew up with a father who owned a tobacco plant and once his dad died, Washington inherited the property as well as the slaves. When he married his wife, Martha the slave count at Mount Vernon went up as well. Washington used to justify slavery because it gave him free labor and helped his plant make money as well as the rest of the country. But once Washington began fighting in the Revolution his views changed and he wasn’t so sure that slavery was helpful to Americas young economy. Washington realized that slavery was wrong and “found slavery economically inefficient. In the last decades of his life, the profits from his farmland did not cover the cost of feeding and clothing the estate’s enslaved people.”(George Washington's Changing Views on Slavery) Slavery as a whole was taking more money from Washington than what it was making him. He realized that slavery had become a disadvantage and harmful to the economy. He also realized that it was wrong and something that he didn’t want to be a part of.
Once Washington's main reason for supporting slavery no longer benefitted him and after spending time fighting in the war with abolitionist, Washington no longer supported slavery. George Washington is best known for being the First President of the United States as well as freeing our country from the British. If you have ever listened to the musical Hamilton, you know John Laurens and Marquis De Lafayette. These two men had a huge impact on Washington’s beliefs on slavery. They made Washington realize all the reasons why slavery was unjust and morally wrong. They showed him what freedom should look like for a new country, and slavery was not the answer. Laurens and Lafayette popped the bubble that Washington was living in and taught him how to be a leader. They influenced his views so much that “Washington explored ways to reduce the number of enslaved people at Mount Vernon without selling them. Most ideas involved renting or selling land to finance an emancipation.”(George Washington's Changing Views on Slavery) He also privately not longer supported slavery and at the end of his life made his beliefs public. He did this by freeing all of his slaves in his Will and sparking the end of slavery.
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