Enough With the Calls to Eradicate Slave-Owning Founding Father's Images

The removal of the Confederate flag from the South Carolina capital grounds has now morphed into demands to eliminate any images and statuary of Confederate heroes and, it hasn't stopped there.  There are now new calls to erase from our history those founding fathers who owned slaves.  People like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, Ben Franklin, James Madison and so many more.

The fact is, that all these men were born into a society where slavery (and resulting racism) had already been institutionalized by the British in 1619 when 20 African slaves were introduced into our first permanent colony of Jamestown.  By the time these founders declared our independence from Britain, in 1776, slavery and its acceptance had been firmly imbedded in society for 157 years.  Over all those years, Britain and other countries happily supplied this country with slaves.

Simply, slavery was prevalent around the known populated world and had been accepted since the time of the Pyramids.  In fact, in Africa, slavery was very prevalent.  In the 19th Century, nearly half of all the citizens in the African country of Sierra Leone were indentured as slaves.  Also understand, that many of the slaves in the new world were sold by the Nigerians.  So, if you want to blame anyone for the attitudes by some whites towards blacks being inferior, then blame the British and the Nigerians for feeding into that idea with the slave trade.  Other people of color such as east Indians, Asians, and also Hispanics are less racially disrespected because they weren't brought to this country as slaves.

Simply, our founding fathers grew up in a society where black slavery was accepted.  Even those who didn't own slaves probably thought of it as a common fact of life.  Let's stop trying to rewrite history about something that was widespread throughout the world at the time this country was founded.  Also, keep in mind that slavery still exists in some parts of Africa while most white populated countries have long since banned the practice. 

References:

Texas Liberals Sign Petition to Remove ‘Racist’ George Washington Statue: http://www.dcclothesline.com/2015/06/25/texas-liberals-sign-petition-to-remove-racist-george-washington-statue/

The Founding Fathers and Slavery: http://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-and-Slavery-1269536

History of Slavery: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_slavery#Portugal

African chiefs urged to apologise for slave trade: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/nov/18/africans-apologise-slave-trade

Slavery in Africa: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Africa

Human trafficking:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking

Human trafficking in the United States: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking_in_the_United_States