Arlington Jefferson-Jackson event may be stripped of namesakes
Sheesh, is this getting ridiculous. Jackson, I don't care, but Jefferson? So much for being the second governor of Virginia, author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, and founder of the University of Virginia.
Hat tip, ArlNow.com: Morning Notes
Arlington Jefferson-Jackson event may be stripped of namesakes
Posted: Thursday, September 3, 2015 7:30 am
Might the Arlington County Democratic Committee’s annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner go forward in future years without its namesakes? The answer could come by the end of the year, or early in 2016.
The party leadership has created a working group to consider options that would include removing the names of the nation’s third and seventh presidents from the annual dinner, held in June and the biggest fundraiser of Arlington Democrats’ annual calendar.
According to the party’s monthly newsletter, ACDC Voice, Arlington is not alone: Democratic groups around the nation are mulling whether to retain Jefferson and Jackson in Jefferson-Jackson Day, a party tradition that dates back 175 years.
The reason: Jefferson was a slaveowner, as was Jackson, with Jackson also running afoul of modern sensibilities by having overseen the forcible expulsion of Native American tribes from some of their traditional lands.
Some state Democratic organizations already had dumped the names of Jefferson and Jackson, including Missouri, which renamed its annual program in honor of native son Harry Truman.
The Arlington County Democratic Committee is accepting comments on the proposal, which can be forwarded to info@arlingtondemocrats.org, and the full story on the situation can be found in the newsletter, available at www.arlingtondemocrats.org.