Who among us knew that George Washington was sort of rapey?

[leftofcool]

Discuss

[Hortensis]

1. Amend: Oh, LOL.

I belatedly read about the marathon press stream-of-consciousness. Poor George. He was something of a stick about his reputation. Hope he's not rolling in his grave.

Fwiw, I have read that Jefferson apparently took overmuch of a fancy to a neighbor's wife and made a number of apparently unwelcome advances while he was away.

[KitSileya]

2. Not to mention Sally Hemings

who, as a slave, could not give meaningful consent to her owner.

[Hortensis]

4. Don't care to be flamed, but I didn't mention her on purpose.

That occurred in very different times, culture, and circumstances. A man using one of his slaves would have been very strongly disapproved of by many in those days (he kept it a strict secret, especially that he fathered children with her) but he would not have been considered a rapist, nor consider himself one.

Their relationship apparently began during the years she was with him and her brother in Paris, revolution and talk of freedom were in the air, and she did not have to return to slavery in America. So it seems extremely likely that, even as a female, the idea that she had rights and choice in this matter did enter her mind, and her brother's. That might well have been in retrospect, after he took advantage of his authority and her extreme youth and position in his household, of course.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. The way I heard it was that George was so upset by the attacks from the press that...

he almost refused to run for a second term.

So, you can find damn near any rumor you want about him.