Frederick Douglass
In the beginning of his speech, Frederick Douglass asks if the principles of political freedom and natural justice apply to him as well. He states that the independence of the white people in the country only serves to highlight the differences between the groups, as the liberty, prosperity, justice, and independence they celebrate only applied to them. He also says that its hypocritical to not give these core principles to African-Americans and then ask one to speak on the Fourth of July, a day for celebrating all these things. If he just forgets about their struggles and joins in with the majority, he says, it would be the same as treason. Douglass denounces "everything that serves to perpetrate slavery" and America's denial of past and present situations. He affirms that, to a slave, the Fourth of July is an extreme reminder of the injustice they have to face, like it's mocking their situation while everyone is celebrating their freedom, and they don't have any. Douglass concludes with saying there is no other nation on Earth as hypocritical and cruel as the United States is on the Fourth of July.
No comments:
Post a Comment