What to the slave is the Fourth of July? – The Bay State Banner

What to the slave is the Fourth of July? – The Bay State Banner

At a time when it feels like the president, Congress, and the judicial branches of government have collectively declared war on Black and brown America, one cannot help but be reminded of Frederick Douglass’ iconic speech, “What to the slave is the Fourth of July?” delivered on July 5, 1852, in Rochester, New York.

‘Speech on the Fourth of July’ by William Lloyd Garrison from The Liberator (Boston). Vol. 24 No. 27. July 7, 1864.

On July 4, 1854, William Lloyd Garrison denounced this slave country, its Constitution and government, in one of U.S. history’s most determined profound dissident speeches, concluding with, perhaps, the greatest and most dramatic ending of any radical pronouncement. The speech makes clear that the struggle against slavery was viewed as part of an international struggle, […]

What, to the New York Times, Is the Fourth of July?

The principles of the founding are a universal moral standard, or they are an exercise in rank hypocrisy. The Times cannot have it both ways.

What to the Catholic is the Fourth of July?

On July 5, 1852, famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass delivered a speech in Rochester, New York, titled “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” In his address, Douglass praised the political philosophy at the heart of American assertions of individual liberty and possessive rights. He called these political theories “saving principles,” which Americans should celebrate as “the great first fact” in American history. As such, he admonished Ame…