General Discussion

Nye Bevan

(25,406 posts)

40. He and Abigail were well ahead of their time.

Fri Jan 17, 2014, 02:34 PM

Jan 2014

Women's rights

Adams was an advocate of married women's property rights and more opportunities for women, particularly in the field of education. Women, she believed, should not submit to laws not made in their interest, nor should they be content with the simple role of being companions to their husbands. They should educate themselves and thus be recognized for their intellectual capabilities, so they could guide and influence the lives of their children and husbands. She is known for her March, 1776 letter to John and the Continental Congress, requesting that they, "...remember the ladies, and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands. Remember all Men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies we are determined to foment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in which we have no voice, or Representation."[2]

Slavery

Along with her husband, Adams believed that slavery was evil and a threat to the American democratic experiment. A letter written by her on March 31, 1776, explained that she doubted most of the Virginians had such "passion for Liberty" as they claimed they did, since they "deprive[d] their fellow Creatures" of freedom.[2]
A notable incident regarding this happened in Philadelphia in 1791, where a free black youth came to her house asking to be taught how to write. Subsequently, she placed the boy in a local evening school, though not without objections from a neighbor. Adams responded that he was "a Freeman as much as any of the young Men and merely because his Face is Black, is he to be denied instruction? How is he to be qualified to procure a livelihood? … I have not thought it any disgrace to my self to take him into my parlor and teach him both to read and write."

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Disney grandniece backs Meryl Streep on Walt's racism and sexism [View all] boston bean Jan 2014 OP

Isn't there a certain problem with holding people of the past to FSogol Jan 2014 #1

sure, but Disney was a racist in an age when plenty of people were fighting it cali Jan 2014 #6

�Our greatest natural resource is the minds of our children.� - Walt Disney FSogol Jan 2014 #9

I have always 2naSalit Jan 2014 #20

You're describing Ronald Reagan, not Walt Disney. n/t FSogol Jan 2014 #21

Not in my recollection of 2naSalit Jan 2014 #24

I admit that "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" was horrifically heightist, Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #25

lol Niceguy1 Jan 2014 #43

Not so much "excusing it" as pointing out that this kind of attitude was not at all uncommon Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #15

But Walt worked through the 50's and iinto the 60's Bluenorthwest Jan 2014 #8

If you are going to make a list of filmmakers who didn't adapt Harper Lee's novel FSogol Jan 2014 #14

When is it too late to tell the truth? DirkGently Jan 2014 #26

Yep, as another example, Helen Thomas did great things, but was also a horrific anti-Semite, Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #32

Yep. And George Washington and Thomas Jefferson owned hundreds of slaves. Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #2

One day they'll say of us: "They said they cared about the environment, but they drove around FSogol Jan 2014 #3

oh c'mon. and Hitler brought Germany's economy back! cali Jan 2014 #7

My post was about people who are generally known for their positive achievements, Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #12

so, rabid bigotry on the scale of Henry Ford's is somehow balanced out by "positive achievements"? cali Jan 2014 #29

I think rightly or wrongly, most people have generally positive views of Ford and Jefferson. Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #36

Even if we take that as truth, the subject of the OP is not simply the man Walt Disney Bluenorthwest Jan 2014 #11

Movies that pay more attention to the positive side of people and gloss over their flaws Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #17

for once, the attempt to rewrite history backfired. Disney was a rightwing asshole geek tragedy Jan 2014 #31

All that really matters is the over-rated ham Meryl got the nomination Emma was robbed of! joeybee12 Jan 2014 #4

Hagiography: the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders Scuba Jan 2014 #5

Time to flush the cycle of superstition, bigotry, and hatred down into the cesspool of of history. Zorra Jan 2014 #10

I don't think anyone's "excusing" it. Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #22

Is social pressure a valid excuse for doing something unethical? Zorra Jan 2014 #37

No, it is not a valid excuse. And the guy in my avatar never used any excuses, Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #38

Yeh, John got it right, with regard to slavery, for sure. And the rest of that crew knew he got it Zorra Jan 2014 #39

He and Abigail were well ahead of their time. Nye Bevan Jan 2014 #40

If Walt Disney were a "figure of awe" like Margaret Thatcher, he might have hughee99 Jan 2014 #13

From trivia winners and stock holders Omaha Steve Jan 2014 #16

Did Meryl Streep applaud for Woody Allen's special honor? Beaverhausen Jan 2014 #18

Maybe 1%er Abigal Disney should turn her monthly Disney check over to charity. FSogol Jan 2014 #19

Abigail Disney uses her money for just causes. Look her up. nt sufrommich Jan 2014 #23

Thanks. BTW, she was 6 when Walt died. n/t FSogol Jan 2014 #27

Or maybe it's about publicity... MattSh Jan 2014 #28

Have you ever seen any of the documentaries she's worked on? countryjake Jan 2014 #33

Nope, but I'll check them out. n/t FSogol Jan 2014 #34

why even dispute that Walt Disney was a sexist? geek tragedy Jan 2014 #30

My mom worked in Hollywood and didn't like Disney at all. hunter Jan 2014 #35

There's a reason Disney the corporation has long been called Mouseshwitz in the trade Fumesucker Jan 2014 #41

I'm surprised this is controversial. Starry Messenger Jan 2014 #42