As a retired educator and a student of history, this issue is near and dear to me.
While there are other examples to cite, this one is often used by leftists to argue that our Founding Fathers were racist white slave owners.
The 3/5 clause, which was part of an agreement during the 1787 Constitutional Convention, is favorite issue used to support the leftists' argument of how our nation has always been oppressive to minorities. Nothing could be further from the truth of the matter. The truth is it was used as means against the continuance of slavery by the abolitionists.
To understand the true reason the 3/5 clause was used in the negotiations, it is necessary to watch this video from Prager University on the topic. If it doesn't make sense after watching it the first time through, I urge you to watch it a second, or third time. Perhaps the repetition will help clarify the intricacies of what had to be used in order to achieve a compromise between the two groups of opposing factions during their negotiations on the amendment.
Hopefully, this will provide an understanding sufficient to those who make the assertion of racism, while ignoring the facts behind the reasoning for such language.
Footnote: If you've not yet watched, or it's been a few years since you have watched it, I highly recommend the most recent movie titled "Lincoln" by Steven Spielberg. It provides an excellent window into the circumstances surrounding that period during and at the end of the Civil War in which both black and white northerners fought to end slavery; sacrificing their lives by the millions to do so.
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