John Adams

Weapons of War on Our Streets?

John Adams and his son, John Quincy, were the only two of our first 12 Presidents who didn’t own slaves.  

I mention this for two reasons: first, to demonstrate how the control and devaluation of Black lives formed the foundation of our political thought; and second, to reinforce that Adams may be more qualified than most founding fathers to speak about justice. 

He wrote, “we are to look upon it as more beneficial, that many guilty persons should escape unpunished, than one innocent person should suffer.”