Book TV: Lerone Bennett, Jr. "Forced Into Glory"

In this event, Lerone Bennett, Jr. talks about his book "Forced Into Glory" and a panel of three scholars-Harold Holzer, William Strickland, and Eric Foner--respond to his comments, agreeing with him on some points and disagreeing with him on others. In his book and talk, Mr. Bennett asserts that President Lincoln was not the "Great Emancipator." Rather, he believed African-Americans were inferior to whites and favored deporting them. Mr. Bennett contends that President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation unwillingly and that it was an ineffective document.

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[JohnMSawyer]

A good commentary on Bennett's book: showcase.netins.net/web/creati­ve/lincoln/books/steers.htm

[Enobeano]

I think it should be illegal for schools to teach kids that "Lincoln Ended slavery" without telling the kids about his racist tendencies, his marriage into a slave owning family, and his desire to send every person of African Descent back to Liberia. He could have bought every slave, and bribed every slave owner out of slavery for less money than he spent on the war.

[mugelerm]

@rickv404 "I will say then that I am not, nor ever have been in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races" - Abe. I don't think you know the truth. Nor did he care about slavery, ever hear of the constitutional amendment he had drafted making it illegal for the Federal government to make laws on slavery, that was to entice the south to remain in the union, and it failed as there were bigger concerns to the south than slavery.

[mrfreaknasssty]

@rickv404 @ rick, Blacks would have never existed?? Huh.? Blacks existed before Slavery. And if Lincoln was indifferent to Blacks, then he was NOT this so called great emancipator that u revisionist historians claimed him to be.

[rickv404]

Bennett is a loon. Certainly Lincoln didn't end slavery all by himself. But he was opposed to it and he did sign the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln served his purpose in that. He was indifferent to blacks otherwise, but what do you expect from people living in that time? The irony of it all is, if there hadn't been slavery, blacks in this country today, including Bennett, would never have existed.

[ke4bss]

what is the point of this video?  When finally starts to say something worth listening to, the video ends.

[dal4018]

@bigmanj35 Hey Bigman I wasn't trying to separate them just saying Lincoln was worse because his true feeling were hidden from the history books and he was made out like he was a "goody two shoe " when he just like you said he was a devil.My oldest brother told a story about the man known falsely as "Honest Abe" he sold black ppl out back of the White House as if he were conducting a going out of business sale and this was before he signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

[bigmanj35]

@dal4018 Brother they are all bad dont try to seperate them like some are good their all wicked,Two peas of a pod

[myaangeline]

@dal4018 i really dont know who lincoln was as a man since he lived over 1 50 yrs ago but all i know is he helped stop slavery for whatever reason!!! and thats all that matters to me:)

[dal4018]

@SteveSunner What positive things do you know about "Honest Abe" that Bennett did not?