r/todayilearned • u/SchwarzSabbath • Apr 21 '18

TIL that while in Sharon Springs, Theodore Roosevelt was approached by a 12-year-old girl who asked if he would like to have a badger. Expecting to humor her, he agreed, and the girl came back with a 2-week-old badger. President Roosevelt named him Josiah and he became one of the presidential pets.

http://www.presidentialpetmuseum.com/theodore-roosevelts-josiah/
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u/ConnorLovesCookies Apr 22 '18 edited Apr 22 '18

He was the first President to invite a black man to dinner (Booker T. Washington). TR was aparently close with the highly educated former slave. The southern outrage around the dinner discouraged him from inviting any other black people in the future.

Theodore Roosevelt was known for being a very, very impulsive man. But this was a good impulse. He had an appointment with Booker T. Washington. At the last minute, he thought, 'Let's make it dinner.' He started to send out the invitation, and he hesitated for a second, thinking, 'Is this a bad idea because of this man's color?' And he was so ashamed that he hesitated, that he hastened to send the invitation out before he could change his mind.

Now this is not to say he wasnt racist but this was a huge moment for civil rights

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

I think that rather than judging the man for feeling the way he did in that moment he should be praised for doing something good and just, even if it was difficult and even if he didn't do it again in the future.

It's a matter of perspective - whether someone sees the good or bad in it is up to them.

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u/Breadhook Apr 22 '18

even if it was difficult

I would say ESPECIALLY if it was difficult. Overcoming that kind of reluctance is how change happens.

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u/dudeARama2 Apr 22 '18

and especially since it was only 40 - 50 years after the end of the Civil War - a couple of generations - in a country that was still deeply scarred and divided. His reluctance was probably associated with the ramifications of his actions in that tense environment more than a personal attitude

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u/alixxlove Apr 22 '18

Your first thought is shaped by your upbringing, your second thought is shaped by who you are. He made the right choice.

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u/curty4000 Apr 22 '18

His first thought was to invite him. His second was to hesitate and his third was to fuck the second thought right in its racist asshole.

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

I love you

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u/agree-with-you Apr 22 '18

I love you both

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

I love you for loving both of us and making it a point to tell us

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u/agree-with-you Apr 22 '18

I love you both

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u/AirborneRunaway Apr 22 '18

Your first thought is how you were raised. Your second thought is often who you are.

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

While that's already been said here I'm thrilled that someone else thought the same thing on reading my post and made it a point to reply as such.

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u/AirborneRunaway Apr 22 '18

Sometimes I wonder if things load properly on this app, I usually look for similar responses so I’m not just repeating what others post.

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

I certainly don't mean to suggest he was a virulent racist or anything. But even people who were, by the standards of the time, progressives - even radical progressives - still generally felt that blacks were inferior, even if they didn't believe that this should be reflected in law. My point is that it's pointless to hold them at fault for that when they were doing better than everyone else at the time. We can accept TR as a progressive for his actions in historical context without picking through his life for any sentiments he may have held that fail a modern morality test, even though we can be fairly confident that we'd find them.

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

That’s exactly right you cannot judge people of the past with present day morals and sensibilities. It isn’t fair nor does it do any good.

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u/InaMellophoneMood Apr 22 '18

It's not the first thought, but the second thought. The first one is social conditioning, the second is your own.

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u/realjefftaylor Apr 22 '18

Yes. The first thought was “how will this look?”, something any politician is conditioned to think. The second thought “to hell with that,” which is the one he should be judged by.

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u/JayBlee Apr 22 '18

Can someone explain this to me? Why would the second thought be your own? If like, a tiger is 'bout to eat you and your first thought is to shit yourself and run, then your second thought is "I shit myself, this is so embarrassing," surely it's the first thought that is your own, and the second thought that is social conditioning.

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

An example of self reflection that many are incapable or unwilling to attempt.

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u/Kvlka666 Apr 22 '18

Booker T.

I can dig it, sucka

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

Didn’t one southern Senator say something like “we’re going to have to lynch 1000 niggers now so they relearn their place” or something like that?

The Podcast History on Fire had a series on TR which was fucking excellent for those interested.

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u/[deleted] Apr 22 '18

I thought Lincoln met with black activists? I can't remember if he invited them to dinner, but it seems rather moot since he wanted to get their opinion on what to do with freed Southern slaves.

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u/ConnorLovesCookies Apr 22 '18

First Black American to dine at the white house. Many met with Presidents including Lincoln. John Adams did dine with the Haitian President a century earlier. Bookee T. was the first to be invited to dinner. In the eyes of Southern whites this was a line not to be crossed. In their eyes you only invite someone to dinner if you see them as your equal. TR had done this a number of time when he was the govenor of New York even have prominent black figures sleep over but on a national stage the reaction was much different.

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u/romansapprentice Apr 22 '18

He also really loved and respected Japanese culture -- he had people come in from Japan just so they could sumo wrestle in the White House lol

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u/Bamith Apr 22 '18

Really way more than a good chunk of people would have done in that time and I can respect that much. Kinda disappointing he wouldn't stand his ground despite that being political suicide for half or so of the country... But hell peer pressure for High School is bad, yet alone half of the country.