In his speech on July 5th, Frederick Douglass discusses what the Fourth of July means to slaves, compared to the majority of Americans. He starts off by acknowledging the greatness of the men who came before him and created the Declaration of Independence. Douglass was asked to speak about the values within this declaration, and how they relate to the issue of slavery. He finds it quite unfair that whites are given a day to celebrate their independence while African Americans are still fighting for theirs. The day may hold celebrations for whites, but holds mourning and loss for slaves. Moving away from the specific date, Douglass speaks passionately about how he and other slaves have been treated, describing the horrors he has seen and experienced. He calls the soul of the nation black due to this holiday they celebrate, and even explicitly states how he has not been making any of this up or exaggerating, but rather is telling the truth about the country. Douglass proudly defends the Negro race, saying that they are the same as any other man. The declaration already stated that equality was a right to every man, and Douglass reminds people of this and how slavery contradicts it. To a slave, the celebration of July 4th is just rubbing salt in the wound.
 |
| Frederick Douglass' Fourth of July speech on the Fifth of July is very similar to Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech. Both men spoke very passionately about their cause, which led more and more people to see their perspective or change their own opinions. Both men also talked about the need for equal rights in America. Douglass talked about the misuse of slavery and how much it contradicted the Declaration of Independence, while King talked about the unfair discrimination still present in the nation where separate but equal was really not equal at all. Both men fought for their cause, doing their own part to make a change in the world. |
No comments:
Post a Comment