LAD/Blog #17: Frederick Douglass' "5th of July" speech

To Fredrick Douglass, the fourth of July was a mockery of the suffering of millions of African Americans, and it was very hypocritical for the white Americans to rejoice in their freedom when it was given to those who earned it. He felt that Black people had no reason at all to partake in the festivities of the Fourth because they had no independence to celebrate. He saw the pain and suffering, and the abuse of African Americans across the nation and saw no way that they were independent of the white men. He stated he would not celebrate the fourth, and would take the fifth as a day of mourning. He mourned for the years of slavery and continued segregation and abuse. He uses July fifth as a way to bring up the change he wants to see in the nation. He saw that both blacks and whites worshiped the same god, yet did not have religious equality. He saw that many African Americans around the country were still enslaved. This speech is a plea to use July Fifth as a day to stop these injustices.

Fredrick Douglass:
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UConn Students protesting Columbus Day:
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