I didn ' t say the Founders were perfect , just that they had a good vision for where the future would lead , and it was even better than they were allowed to enact in their time . Some of them actually educated their slaves , so it ' s not like they all thought they were too stupid . Given how many were wellread , I imagine they understood the difference between dumb and uneducated . Ultimately , I do think it affects your point , because the Constitution as it was written was intentionally vague . Nowhere in there is a right to own Slaves , nor a passage saying some men are better than others some men are not capable of being free and being citizens . Rather , it was left to the States , or was broadly interpreted to allow for skirting of basic laws for certain groups of people . I ' m not saying the latter is right if anything , I hate all broad interpretations of the Constitution . But I think it ' s wrong to dismiss the Founders as totally backwards . They clearly left out personal beliefs that would go out of style eventually , and that ' s what has made the Constitution such an enduring document .