This Friday at noon, Frederick Douglas’ famous speech ““What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” will be delivered on the Newton Centre Green by wide variety of Newton citizens – each taking a part.
The event is sponsored by Historic Newton with funding from Mass Humanities and will coincide with similar readings around the state.
Frederick Douglas was an ex-slave, a tireless and fearless abolitionist, a writer, an agitator, but most of all an orator. This speech, perhaps his most well known, is an incredibly powerful and deeply moving piece of writing, but even more it’s a beautifully crafted piece of oratory meant to stir, disturb, and move people to action. The speech was delivered in 1852 but is still relevant today.
I read it this morning in preparation for Friday’s event. Even on the printed page this speech reaches out and grabs you, shakes you, and gets your heart pounding.
“There is not a man beneath the canopy of heaven, that does not know that slavery is wrong for him.”
That speech is immensely powerful. Given who gave it, the time in history, and the conditions around him, it is an understatement to say he was very brave, not to mention articulate.
Not sure how happy a day it was in Rochester NY, after that speech was given. Hard to celebrate, when your hypocrisy is laid bare before you.
Though I guess it was actually given on July 5th; wouldn’t want to spoil the big day with some words of truth.
Frederick Douglas stood up to speak truth to power. I have often wondered if he planned to give this powerful oratory on July 4 instead of July 5 since he refers several times to it being Independence Day that day. The entire speech is a powerful indictment of the hypocrisy of this new republic in its blindness to the words of the Declaration of Independence and its Constitution. One part that always stands out for me, among many others, is his refusal to have mercy on the church as he points out how powerful the teachings of the church really are when he says,
““There is no power out of the church that could sustain slavery an hour, if it were not sustained in it.””
“Let the religious press, the pulpit, the Sunday school, the conference meeting, the great ecclesiastical, missionary, Bible and tract associations of the land array their immense powers against slavery and slave-holding; and the whole system of crime and blood would be scattered to the winds; and that they do not do this involves them in the most awful responsibility of which the mind can conceive.”
So true and it is relevant today.
Sounds like an interesting event. I hope to get there. With regard to the original date, it may be significant that July 4, 1852, fell on a Sunday, perhaps pushing events marking the Fourth to Monday.
@Jerry: Well done!! That was a very moving event! Glad to be a part of it.
Good job you Amy! Amy was the 2nd orator in today’s lineup.
And here’s the link: http://www.historicnewton.org/. Go to the July 4th Address of Frederick Douglass: A Public Reading and click on stream it here.
I hope there are more of these events! Great job, Historic Newton!
Powerful indeed. I was particularly impressed by the two high school students who so clearly appreciated the eloquence of the words and conveyed it so expressively.