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Frederick Douglass And The Lingering Relevance Of His ‘What To The Slave Is The Fourth of July?’ Spe Posted by Christopher Blackwell on July 4, 2026, 10:47 am https://newsone.com/3881725/frederick-douglass-fourth-july-speech-full-text/ Frederick Douglass And The Lingering Relevance Of His ‘What To The Slave Is The Fourth of July?’ Speech "What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July?" Frederick Douglass asked in 1852. The answer remains elusive 172 years later. Too long for me to post here, but it makes a good read if you read it. ChristopherBlackwell

An excerpt Posted by greenman on July 4, 2026, 1:26 pm, in reply to "Frederick Douglass And The Lingering Relevance Of His ‘What To The Slave Is The Fourth of July?’ Spe" 'What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? 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. . . . I will not enlarge further on your national inconsistencies. The existence of slavery in this country brands your republicanism a sham, your humanity a base pretense, and your Christianity a lie. It destroys your moral power abroad; it corrupts your politicians at home. It saps the foundation of religion; it makes your name a hissing, and a bye-word to a mocking earth. It is the antagonistic force in your government, the only thing that seriously disturbs and endangers your Union. It fetters your progress; it is the enemy of improvement, the deadly foe of education; it fosters pride; it breeds insolence; it promotes vice; it shelters crime; it is a curse to the earth that supports it; and yet, you cling to it, as if it were the sheet anchor of all your hopes. Oh! Be warned! Be warned! A horrible reptile is coiled up in your nation’s bosom; the venomous creature is nursing at the tender breast of your youthful republic; for the love of God, tear away, and fling from you the hideous monster, and let the weight of twenty millions crush and destroy it forever! . . .' SAY ‘NO’ TO WAR! RESIST!

Douglass was a brilliant man Posted by greenman on July 4, 2026, 12:55 pm, in reply to "Frederick Douglass And The Lingering Relevance Of His ‘What To The Slave Is The Fourth of July?’ Spe" Valued Poster The question cannot be answered, since the Founders failed to abolish slavery. SAY ‘NO’ TO WAR! RESIST!

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