Frederick Douglass' Descendants Read From His Famous Speech: 'What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July?'

On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass stood earlier an abolitionist radical and gave 1 of his astir celebrated speeches: "What To The Slave Is The Fourth of July?" That code confronted the hypocrisy of an Independence Day successful a state that inactive endorsed the bondage and forced labour of much than 1 successful 8 of its residents.

In July 2020, we asked 5 Douglass descendants to work and respond to excerpts of that speech. They reflected connected America's ongoing pursuit of liberty and justness for all.

This task was inspired by the documentary task "Whitman, Alabama."