Jefferson Would've Joined, not Busted, Dancers

Fiddle-playing, freedom-loving Founding Father Thomas Jefferson would not have been happy with the heavy-handed arrest of dancers at the Jefferson Memorial, writes Sarah Kaufman. It's absurd to ban dancing in Jefferson's name because not only was the third president fond of dancing himself, America owes its dance heritage to Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase, Kaufman writes at the Washington Post.

When Jefferson made New Orleans a part of the US, the city was an "unrivaled dance capital," and a sizzling melting pot for cultures, music, and dance steps from all over the world, Kaufman writes. "So is there any better way to honor Jefferson, the father of American dance, than with a quiet boogie at his memorial?" she wonders. "Next time, maybe the protesters could add a fiddler, too." (More Jefferson Memorial stories.)