Andrew Jackson views on Slavery

     Slavery has been a dividing factor of the United States and people for hundreds to thousands of years. Not only did slavery spark the Civil War in America, but led to multiple opposing views on this toxic act. Many political figures also had opposing views on slavery. For example, Abraham Lincoln, our president from 1861 to 1865, worked to abolish slavery in America. There were other leaders, including Andrew Jackson, who was pro-slavery. 

Andrew Jackson was the 7th president of the United States. Jackson was born on March 15 1767, growing up in South Carolina. He grew up in the south surrounded by a culture consisting of many plantations. His father actually raised Jackson on a plantation. President Jackson actually owned as many as 161 slaves at one point in his life. He used these slaves to his advantage, by building up wealth and even taking some to the White House. Unlike northern abolitionists, Jackson fell victim to Pro-slavery views. This was a culture that was entrenched in the south, that Jackson grew up around for years, rather than him having a secretly pro-elite mentality. Jackson even once helped ban the delivery and called the abolitionists of slavery, “atone for this wicked attempt with their lives.”  Many say Jackson should actually be removed from the twenty dollar bill for such actions. However, Andrew Jackson was not in it for the cruelty but was in it for the economy. 

The south compared to the north was a sitting gold mine for crop production. The number one crop produced in the southern states was cotton at the time. Almost all plantations and slaves in the south were producing cotton. Even on president Jackson’s plantation, cotton was being produced by other men. In the world, Northern states found this cruel, however according to Jackson, abolishing slavery would cause economic distress in america. At this point, 75% of the world's cotton production was coming from these southern states. Abolishing slavery would not just take away money from America, but would take away many of the individual state rights. President Jackson worked to fight for individual state rights, insead of fighting on behalf of the common man or slave. Jackson's small-government ideas and monetary policy views stunted the attempts of others like John Quincy Adams, the 6th president of the United States. Quincy Adams looked  to invest in American infrastructure, which led to the Panic of 1837, a financial crisis that touched off a recession lasting seven years. Keeping slavery to the southern states would keep a booming economy for America. 

Finally, at one point abolitionists began to spread anti-slavery tracts through the mail in 1835. Jackson kept the southern economy in his mind and helped sign a ban on the mail. Postmaster General Amos Kendall created a solution that would grant southern state officials the power to ban the tracts. President Jackson supported this solution preventing any possible economic collapse. 

All in all, many have opposing views on slavery in the United States, where the northern states worked to abolish slavery, and the southern states tried to keep their economy booming. President Andrew Jackson was one of those who was in support of keeping slavery a culture in America for many reasons, mainly the pot of gold slavery gave the southern states.