Page 94 - JM Book 9/2020

Hancock yielded the gavel to Benjamin Harrison, and the committee of the whole continued to debate the slavery clause.
Some colonies had already taken steps in the past to deal with slavery. Connecticut, Rhode Island, Georgia, Delaware and Virginia had adopted resolutions that would prohibit or curtail the importation of slaves. King George, however, blocked all of those actions from being enforced.
In addition to the efforts of those five colonies, the First Continental Congress had adopted the Continental Association on October 20, 1774. The Association placed a boycott on the importation of English goods, including slaves, and banned the export of American products to Great Britain.
When debate on the slave clause continued, a majority of the delegates
wanted to keep the clause in the declaration.
The delegates in Philadelphia could not know that it would be almost one hundred years before slavery would be ended in America, or the terrible cost of the civil war that would be fought to end it.
Edward Rutledge repeated
that they would hold fast to
their promise to vote against the
declaration if the slavery clause
were not removed. “Slave labor
is necessary for the cultivation of
rice and indigo,” he passionately
said. “We will not support a
provision that will destroy South
Carolina’s economy. Some of you might believe that slavery is morally wrong. But slavery has been practiced around the world for centuries, including in our Mother Country. And as you know, slaves have been in America since the early seventeenth century.”
“Our new beginning must not be burdened by the lingering injustice of slavery,” stated Benjamin Franklin. He stood with his hands holding on to the table. “We must start with a clean slate.” This was one of the few times he had ever participated in the debate on any topic.
Jefferson watched the faces of the delegates as Franklin spoke. He observed that everyone’s eyes were focused on Franklin. His words seemed to have an effect on many of them, but not the men from South Carolina and Georgia.
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