whose chains, heavy and grievous yesterday, are, to-day, rendered more intolerable by the jubilee shouts that reach them. This year we mark both the 400th anniversary of the arrival of captive Africans to the British colonies and the 65th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. The story of most nations is difficult to catalogue. I am not that man. I answer; a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. He implored the Rochester, N.Y., audience to think about the ongoing oppression of Black Americans during a holiday celebrating freedom. I will use the severest language I can command; and yet not one word shall escape me that any man, whose judgment is not blinded by prejudice, or who is not at heart a slaveholder, shall not confess to be right and just. Who so stolid and selfish, that would not give his voice to swell the hallelujahs of a nation's jubilee, when the chains of servitude had been torn from his limbs? There are seventy-two crimes in the State of Virginia which, if committed by a black man (no matter how ignorant he be), subject him to the punishment of death; while only two of the same crimes will subject a white man to the like punishment. In that instrument I hold there is neither warrant, license, nor sanction of the hateful thing; but, interpreted as it ought to be interpreted, the Constitution is a GLORIOUS LIBERTY DOCUMENT. Cling to this daycling to it, and to its principles, with the grasp of a storm-tossed mariner to a spar at midnight. But its quite another to change the way you see yourself and to grow into a person deeply committed to long-term interracial coalition building. That annihilation of space has allowed for real time reporting of events, which in turn has led to considerable change around the world. The freedom gained is yours; and you, therefore, may properly celebrate this anniversary. They were great in their day and generation. Hed had a breakdown in the early 1850s, and was having trouble supporting his family. Magazines, 4,000 African Americans paraded down Broadway in New York City, Or create a free account to access more articles, 'What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? Thoughts expressed on one side of the Atlantic are, distinctly heard on the other.. Its the birth of American Independence, the birth of a nation, and what the speech is saying is you must destroy first what you created and remake it, or it will be destroyed and you with it, says Blight. Harvard Law School provides unparalleled opportunities to study law with extraordinary colleagues in a rigorous, vibrant, and collaborative environment. Has the public reading of the speech each year on Boston Commonor the experience or meaning of itchanged over the years? Presenting ideas in. They that can, may; I cannot. Frederick Douglass "What to the Slave" - Lesson Plan | Learning to Frederick Douglass Museum in Rochester NY: Fundraising underway What is the main message of Douglass's speech? He wrote a glowing letter of encouragement to Harriet Tubman, which served as the preface to Sarah Bradfords 1869 biography about Tubmans life. We have to do with the past only as we can make it useful to the present and to the future. All rights reserved. Must we allow symbols of racism on public land? The principles contained in that instrument are saving principles. At some future period I will gladly avail myself of an opportunity to give this subject a full and fair discussion. Indeed, his speech, which warns that Your republican politics, not less than your republican religion, are flagrantly inconsistent, should be required reading for any such commission. Cling to this day cling to it, and to its principles, with the grasp of a storm-tossed mariner to a spar at midnight. There is blasphemy in the thought. In the early 2000s Community Change started a tradition of reading the Douglass speech in its library. Overseers announce new president, vice chair. I attended in 2008 and was deeply moved by the experience. But a change has now come over the affairs of mankind. Fellow-citizens! Interview was lightly edited for clarity and length. At the time Douglass spoke, Blight says, the opportunity was ripe for a lecture on the moral crisis. The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. It saps the foundation of religion; it makes your name a hissing, and a byword to a mocking earth. Would you argue more, and denounce less; would you persuade more, and rebuke less; your cause would be much more likely to succeed." In the early 1850s, tensions over slavery were high across the county. Writing before slaves were freed in the United States, Douglass' main objective in the Narrative is to dispel any notion that slavery is good for those enslaved. Long established customs of hurtful character could formerly fence themselves in, and do their evil work with social impunity. The fiat of the Almighty, "Let there be Light," has not yet spent its force. That first year, 2009, was also President Obamas first year in office. At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. The most famous speech of the orator's career, it marked a departure from his mentor, Boston abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison.In it, Douglass expressed his desire to participate in the political life of the nation, while the more radical . The charter of our liberties, which every citizen has a personal interest in understanding thoroughly. What is surprising about this appeal? That year will come, and freedoms reign, His friend Julia Griffith, the treasurer of the Rochester group that invited him to give the 1852 speech, was one of the people helping him fund-raise to keep the paper alive. They acknowledge it when they punish disobedience on the part of the slave. However, this was not the purpose of Douglass's speech. The Fugitive Slave Act passed by Congress as part of this compromise was bitterly resented by the Northern states. What is the main message of Douglass's speech? GAZETTE: This is your second year as host of Reading Frederick Douglass Together in Somerville. No! They are plain, common-sense rules, such as you and I, and all of us, can understand and apply, without having passed years in the study of law. Two years before Douglass' famed speech, the U.S. government passed the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, which required runaway slaves to be returned to their owners. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth." What is his opinion of the American Founders? Of Douglass's many speeches, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" was perhaps one of the most well-known. I have better employment for my time and strength than such arguments would imply. While I do not intend to argue this question on the present occasion, let me ask, if it be not somewhat singular that, if the Constitution were intended to be, by its framers and adopters, a slave-holding instrument, why neither slavery, slaveholding, nor slave can anywhere be found in it. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. The wet plate ambrotype plates are housed in a folding leather case with tooled gilt oval mat. For more information on this event visit CharlesHamiltonHouston.org. To what other elements in the American political tradition does he appeal? what is the main message of douglass's speech? America is false to the past, false to the present, and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future, Douglass said. They were peace men; but they preferred revolution to peaceful submission to bondage. Douglass's own sons, Lewis and Charles, became two of the first to volunteer for the 54th, which ultimately comprised more than 1,000 men from 15 Northern states. The papers and placards say, that I am to deliver a 4th of July oration. On this, the bicentennial year of Douglasss birth, the Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives and American Universitys Antiracist Research and Policy Center are honoring 200 Americans whose work best reflects his legacy. She can speak not only to Douglass' historical importance but to the urgency and relevancy of his message in today's . Yale historian David Blight analyzes Douglass's speech and discusses its historical context in an episode ofthe podcastBackStory with the American History Guys (scroll down to the episode "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?"). We convened a group of interested parties, met a few times over a couple of months, and decided to launch an event on the Common. Funny you should ask. Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. But, while the river may not be turned aside, it may dry up, and leave nothing behind but the withered branch, and the unsightly rock, to howl in the abyss-sweeping wind, the sad tale of departed glory. Go forth. What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? They were peace men; but they preferred revolution to peaceful submission to bondage. The Nativist party is rising. The subject has been handled with masterly power by Lysander Spooner, Esq., by William Goodell, by Samuel E. Sewall, Esq., and last, though not least, by Gerritt Smith, Esq. 'It should be here in Rochester.' Fundraising underway for Frederick Addressing an audience of about 600 at the newly constructed Corinthian Hall, he started out by acknowledging that the signers of the Declaration of Independence were brave and great men, and that the way they wanted the Republic to look was in the right spirit. 11th annual public reading of What to the slave is the Fourth of July? takes place on July 2nd at noon on Boston Common, Photo via the Harvard Gazette David Harris, managing director of the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice at Harvard Law School. The message of Frederick Douglasss 1852 speech on the contradiction of Americas just ideals and unjust realities endures. We would be well advised to ponder Douglasss speech as we frame this conversation. Why Frederick Douglass Matters - History Wind, steam, and lightning are its chartered agents. Thats a tough one for me. Open Document. Fellow Citizens, I am not wanting in respect for the fathers of this republic. How unlike the politicians of an hour! I can to-day take up the plaintive lament of a peeled and woe-smitten people! Fredrick Douglas Flashcards | Quizlet This project began in the library of an organization called Community Change, which was founded by Horace Seldon in 1968 to address the white problem at the root of American inequality revealed by the Kerner Report. He who will, intelligently, lay down his life for his country, is a man whom it is not in human nature to despise. On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass gave a keynote address at an Independence Day celebration and asked, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? Douglass was a powerful orator, often traveling six months out of the year to give lectures on abolition. EDSITEment is a project of theNational Endowment for the Humanities, Uncle Toms Cabin: Or Life among the Lowly, From Courage to Freedom: Frederick Douglass's 1845 Autobiography. This celebration also marks the beginning of another year of your national life; and reminds you that the Republic of America is now 76 years old. According to this fact, you are, even now, only in the beginning of your national career, still lingering in the period of childhood. Throughout this speech, as well as his life, Douglass advocated equal justice and rights, as well as citizenship, for blacks. That day will come all feuds to end. There should be no shoulder that does not bear the burden of the government. He had a prophetic vision for the future that he was always trying to work toward. GAZETTE: Why is it important to do this kind of community-building work at a local level? and am I, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar, and to confess the benefits and express devout gratitude for the blessings resulting from your independence to us?, Would to God, both for your sakes and ours, that an affirmative answer could be truthfully returned to these questions! But I fancy I hear some one of my audience say, it is just in this circumstance that you and your brother abolitionists fail to make a favorable impression on the public mind. Why, then, did Douglass speak as harshly as he did? One of the parts of the speech that resonates with me the most is when Douglass says: What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? The audience of Douglass' message were abolitionists, who were white people from the north who did not own slaves and wanted to abolish slavery. Pride and patriotism, not less than gratitude, prompt you to celebrate and to hold it in perpetual remembrance. What is the main message of Douglass's speech? I am not included within the pale of glorious anniversary! Behind the Speech: What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? | Time . The 4th of July is the first great fact in your nations historythe very ring-bolt in the chain of your yet undeveloped destiny. To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, is inhuman mockery. Must I argue that a system thus marked with blood, and stained with pollution, is wrong? Throughout this speech, as well as his life, Douglass advocated equal justice and rights, as well as citizenship, for blacks.He begins his speech by modestly apologizing for being nervous in front of the crowd and recognizes that he has come a long way since his escape from slavery. The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. God speed the day when human bloodShall cease to flow!In every clime be understood,The claims of human brotherhood,And each return for evil, good,Not blow for blow;That day will come all feuds to end.And change into a faithful friendEach foe. Frederick Douglass - Narrative, Quotes & Facts | HISTORY I repeat, I am glad this is so. This speech is now remembered as oneof Douglass' most poignant. The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. Why does Douglass appeal to the Constitution in the last section of the speech? Intelligence is penetrating the darkest corners of the globe. He engages the listeners emotionally by stating his opinion over the topic of slavery. One of the biggest challenges we face in our present moment is building sustainable movements that fundamentally change peoples minds about race and racism. Two readings, 165 years apart, addressed to a nation at a precarious political moment. Why Frederick Douglass Is Important? - FAQS Clear What is Frederick Douglass's overall claim in The Narrative of the Life To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty, and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony. You have already declared it. The first autobiography, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself, catapulted him to fame and invigorated the abolitionist movement. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. Although it has also facilitated the spread of hateful ideas and untruths, I suspect Douglass, who understood perhaps better than anyone in the 19th century the power of images, would have reveled in our ability to capture and convey video of events. Standing with God and the crushed and bleeding slave on this occasion, I will, in the name of humanity which is outraged, in the name of liberty which is fettered, in the name of the constitution and the Bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon, dare to call in question and to denounce, with all the emphasis I can command, everything that serves to perpetuate slavery the great sin and shame of America! Another remarkable thing about Douglass is that he was an early champion of voting rights for women. Above your national, tumultuous joy, I hear the mournful wail of millions whose chains, heavy and grievous yesterday, are, today, rendered more intolerable by the jubilee shouts that reach them. I generally try to avoid speculating about current or historical figures I dont know. Be warned! Frederick Douglass (18181895) was a former slave who became a nationally recognizedabolitionist orator during the antebellum period. Th oppressd shall vilely bend the knee, An edited version of Douglasss speech is provided below. My subject, then, fellow-citizens, is American slavery. Members of the public will take turns reading parts of the speech until theyve read all of it, together. Oh! It is a slander upon their memory, at least, so I believe. Why Frederick Douglass' famous 1852 anti-slavery speech is still read and still resonates in 2017. No abuse, no outrage whether in taste, sport or avarice, can now hide itself from the all-pervading light.