Neil and all, Thank you Neil for pointing out a GREAT paper by Prof. Mayer. He is ABSOLUTELY correct in his assessment and I also have a copy of a letter he sent to Dr. Daniel Jordan, Monticello President, sometime ago and he DID NOT pull any punches in his anger and disgust at Jordan's tactics. If he would permit me to summarize it for our readers here I and YOU would be most appreciative. I have several other copies of letters to Dan Jordan registering complaints of such shoddy and biased research and discontinuing their large donations to Monticello. The "hiding under the rug" of Dr. Wallenborn's very valuable Minority Report was the breaking point for many. Deception did not fit into the image of a foundation owning Mr. Jefferson's home and being manipulative about the study just did not seem to work together. We also have a very valuable item we would gladly contribute to the Monticello collection (a wax imprint of Thomas Jefferson's ancestral grandfather's (Thomas Jefferson I) Custom Stamp, authenticated by the British Government in early colonial history. It is very detailed and beautiful BUT I told the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation as long as Dan Jordan and the present management there remained we would not give this present. WHEN and IF Monticello decides to be fair and call another research study to replace the biased Monticello Study, supervised by the African-American, oral history specialist, Dianne Swann-Wright, we would reevaluate our position, in our opinion, our research has shown that the present management there operates in a manner "hazardous to the image and legacy of Mr. Jefferson. I and other members of the Thomas Jefferson Heritage Society (www.tjheritage.org) would welcome an interview with the full Thomas Jefferson Foundation and the new Chairman and the new President. A new impartial and independent group of scholars and specialists MUST have a study that would consider ALL facts known about this fiasco. The public has been "conned and lied to" long enough and it's definitely brought out in the Annette Gordon-Reed book and in her first book also. Dianne Swann-Wright and most of the members of the original biased report group have since departed. Dan Jordan who has steadfast idly maintained that stance will be retiring in a few days. Just imagine his claim that probably all of Sally's children were fathered by TJ when ONLY ONE was tested. It is this unfair, unproven and INCORRECT statement that article writers, history writers, the media and others stress when writing about the Jefferson-Hemings Study. Let the CORRECT word go forth from the mountain top, not a politically motivated agenda. As time permits I will write selected snippets from this "DEFECTIVE" Monticello Report that will enlighten the readers knowledge of this and how easily the bias can be seen. Let us HOPE that a new leaf will be turned over on the mountain and that the Thomas Jefferson Foundation "restored" to it's original title, The Thomas Jefferson MEMORIAL Foundation. UNITE...Jefferson lovers and admirers, DEMAND A MAJOR correction there. I have any information on this fiasco that you may need. Herbert Barger Jefferson Family Historian Dr. Hardwick and all, As so well presented by David N. Mayer, a professor of law and history and member of the Scholars' Commission on the Jefferson-Hemings Matter, there is indeed a politicization of the TJ-SH Myth, which is widespread in the American History world beyond that. It permeates your profession, due to "...the rise of three related phenomena in higher education -- the 'political correctness' movement, multiculturalism, and post-modernism -- (that) helps explain why the TJ-SH myth has become so readily accepted today, not only by the American general public but also by scholars who should know better." Among other topics, Mayer goes on to address how many American historians have resigned their memberships in historians' professional organizations (AHA and OAH) due to the growing political radicalism mentioned above. In fact, Mayer says, and I quote due to its importance: "...scholars feel pressured to accept the Jefferson-Hemings myth as historical truth. White male scholars in particular fear that by questioning the myth -- by challenging the validity of the oral tradition "evidence" cited by some of the Hemings descendants -- they will be called racially "insensitive," if not racist....and, among many proponents of the Jefferson paternity claim there has emerged a truly disturbing McCarthyist-like inquisition that has cast its pall over Jefferson scholarship today." Continuing: "Questioning the validity of the claim has been equated with the denigration of African Americans and the denial of their rightful place in American history. In this climate of scholarly and public opinion, it requires great personal courage for scholars to question the Jefferson paternity thesis and to point out the dubious historical record on which it rests." And, "In both the preface and conclusion to her book, Professor Gordon-Reed quite directly admits that her mission is to expose the "troubling, --i.e., racist -- assumptions made by historians who have denied "the truth of a liaison between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings."" So, with this knowledge, why would anyone wish to read her latest book. It's yet another one of a series, a 'team' effort intended to tear down Thomas Jefferson's image and legacy, piece by piece. As to further politicization, it is self-admittance when Joseph Ellis (as at least once-leader of the Monticello Foundation historians' group) says that tearing down Jefferson is paramount as "the dead-white-male who matters most" and the "most valued trophy in the cultural wars." How more clearly political can this be...!! How well must this politicization be hid from some scholars, for it not to be readily recognized and openly discussed. I recommend viewers read Mayer's entire presentation here, it's very informing and only requires a few minutes: http://www.ashbrook.org/articles/mayer-hemings.html Mayer doesn't speak alone, there are many more articles by prominent historians in the history journals. Neil McDonald ______________________________________ To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html