Fox News host complains that learning about slavery makes people 'feel guilty'

On Sunday's episode of Fox & Friends, co-hosts complained that Thomas Jefferson's home, Monticello, was becoming "woke" due to changes in the way Jefferson is perceived.

Jefferson, who owned 600 slaves throughout his life, had nearly 400 people enslaved on his plantation Monticello located in Virginia. In recent years, Monticello has re-framed the narrative surrounding Jefferson to include the history of enslaved people at the plantation.

Much of the information from Monticello's website focuses on Jefferson's hypocrisy as a slave-owner who also wrote "all men are created equal" in the Declaration of Independence.

The Fox and Friends hosts criticized this citing a recent New York Post article that included negative feedback from visitors who felt Jefferson's reputation was painted negatively.

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Throughout the tour, visitors are educated about slavery and racism and much of the gift shop is filled with educational books about the topic.

Co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy said the museum's efforts to educate visitors about racism and slavery "makes you feel guilty and not so great about America."

Fox News host says 'diabolical' museum that made her feel 'ashamed' about slaverywww.youtube.com

Monticello published an op-ed on their website on July 4th encouraging people to have a conversation reflecting on how a "better understanding of our past will aid us in building a better future".

In response to The Post article criticizing Monticello's shift in focus, a spokesperson for Monticello said, "Our goal is to present an honest, inclusive history of Monticello in all its aspects as well as Jefferson’s contributions to the founding of the country,” said Jenn Lyon, a Monticello spokesperson.

Later on, Jeffery Tucker joined Brian Kilmeade to speak to his own experience at Monticello, calling it 'demoralizing' and 'heartbreaking'

"I just thought that maybe Monticello would be protected from this disease of wokeism," Tucker said.

Tucker said some older paintings have been replaced by "woke piece of art" and many of Jefferson's accomplishments are "diminished".

Projects like the New York Times' 1619 Project are focused on reframe the narrative of American history to place "the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative."

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