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Racism of all kinds seems to have existed in the United States from the birth of the nation. Many of the founding fathers pushed to have the practice of slavery abolished since it was quite popular at the time. They wished to make it illegal to own or trade slaves in the laws of the Constitution of the United States.

This means as early as 1776, the issue of racism and human rights were being raised. Many point fingers at Thomas Jefferson, who drew up the Declaration of Independence which states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.” While these words stir the human soul, some had to wonder at Jefferson’s preaching versus his own practices since it is reported that he, himself, owned approximately 200 slaves. On the other hand though, it is also rumored that he inherited these slaves and did not want to trade them or sell them to free himself since the act of buying and selling was unpleasant to him. Whether this is true, it is unsure. We do know though that racism and slavery was an issue from the beginning and that Jefferson did feel a strong passion for the equal rights of all men.

It would be years though before “equal rights would start to be enforced. The Civil War was fought to free slaves and gives them there rights. Nearly a century later, Martin Luther King and his followers would be continuing the work of generations of African Americans and whites to make changes. Since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, there has been an awareness of minority groups and the rights of all individuals. This flame continues to burn as minority racial groups seek equal equality in all aspects of life.