Fact Check: Joe Biden's great-grandfather didn't own slaves, fight for Confederacy

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Protests nationwide are calling for America to reckon with its racist history. Amid that, as the 2020 election approaches, misinformation about Joe Biden's family history is spreading online.

A meme shared June 17 on Facebook claims that Biden’s great-grandfather, named Joseph J. Biden in the post, was a slave owner and fought for the Confederate States of America. The text is displayed below a monochrome photo that allegedly depicts great-grandpa Biden toting a gun.

The meme appears to have originated from a blog post made in Aug. 27, 2008, four days after former President Barack Obama picked Biden as his running mate. The post offers no evidence regarding the claim.

The person who shared the meme on Facebook did not respond to a request for comment and clarification from USA TODAY.

-snip-

USA TODAY also found no evidence that anyone in former Biden’s direct lineage fought for the Confederate Army.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/fact-check-joe-bidens-great-140926691.html

[Odoreida]

1. And if he did so what? n/t

[JI7]

2. even if his ancestors did, what matters is where he stands on issues

this is just stupid. it's like excusing racist shit right now becsuse of something that happened before anyone here was around.

[drray23]

3. So now rw trolls are going back 3 generations

to find something they can blame Biden about? Pathetic. Even if he had an ancestor like that, there is nothing Biden can do other than fight for civil rights and against bigotry which is what he has done his whole life.

[StarfishSaver]

4. Only clueless white people who know nothing about Black Americans matter

would think we'd give anything even close to a hoot about this.

Most of US have slave masters in our trees - that would just give him one more thing in common with us ...

[Clash City Rocker]

5. If you're not blaming Trump for his dad, how can you blame Biden for his great granddad?

[gratuitous]

9. That's the answer

Not to mention that Donald his own self has a bushel basket full of racist deeds and comments to choose from. Why, as recently as this past weekend, he re-tweeted one of his supporters yelling "White Power."

Now, what did Joe Biden's ancestor do back in the 19th century?

[Under The Radar]

6. There is a thought, Trumps mother and his paternal grandfather

....migrated from Scotland and Germany. Why in the hell does he feel affection for the confederate states?

[jorgevlorgan]

7. true or not that meme helps us do one thing

It helps us acknowledge that slavery and the civil war was really not that long ago. Biden's great grandfather fought for the Union in the civil war. That isnt many generations off.

[Budi]

8. It is a Lie. Nothing more to suppose but this.

[GulfCoast66]

10. All my ancestors fought for the confederacy.

And I’m a liberal democrat. I would make a horrible president. But better than what we have now.

[ucrdem]

11. Here's the USA Today fact check:

Biden’s genealogy

The former vice president's paternal great-grandfather was named George T. Biden, not Joseph J. Biden, as the claim suggests. George Biden was born in Maryland in 1867, two years after the Civil War ended. He died in 1933.

George’s father – former VP Biden’s paternal great-great-grandfather – was named Joseph H. Biden. On some genealogy sites, his name is listed as Joseph J. H. Biden, which may be where the name in the claim came from. Joseph H. Biden was born in 1828, as the claim suggests of former VP Biden’s great-grandfather.

Both Joseph H. and George Biden were born, raised and buried in Maryland.

Candidate Biden’s maternal great-grandfather was named Edward F. Blewitt. He was born in 1859, making him 6 years old when the Civil War ended. The Blewitt family immigrated to America from County Mayo, Ireland, in 1851.

Biden’s ancestry is easily traceable online through multiple genealogy websites. USA TODAY primarily used Geni.com.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/06/29/fact-check-joe-bidens-great-grandfather-did-not-own-slaves/3264488001/

[Sugarcoated]

12. Thank you, media!

I hope they continue to debunk this shit