Gene F. Danforth: Loving neighbors will greatly improve our country

To The Daily Sun,

I read Charles Ajootian's letter titled “Americans must discuss, learn from all aspects of American history” printed in The Laconia Daily Sun on Feb. 2. I wholeheartedly agree. But then I went on to read the 3/5 myth that has distorted so many in understanding American history.

At that time, slaves in the southern states were property of the Southerners, who intended to expand slavery to the western territories, Mexico and Cuba. If their slaves were counted as one and not 3/5, most likely the south would have had more constituents and gotten more representatives, based upon census.

Also within the Constitution Article 1, section 9 stated that Congress could not prohibit the “importation” of persons prior to 1808, 20 years after signing the Constitution of the United States of America, “the Act to Prohibit the Importation of Slaves in any port or place within the jurisdiction of the United States after the first day of January 1808.” From The Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves of 1807 (2 Stat. 426, enacted March 2, 1807).

Let us all move forward. No country has done as much for humanity's advance as the U.S. has. It took English thinkers to expand upon the Magna Carta down through the ages to our founding charters for our colonies. All mentioned God.

So, if we love our neighbors as ourselves, we will see a great improvement in our country. 

Gene F. Danforth

Danbury