07/04/2024
Frederick Douglass and the 4th of July
Believe it or not, some blacks are not enthusiastic about celebrating the 4th of July because they say that blacks were still slaves at the time of the Declaration of Independence, and that it did not apply to blacks, only whites. They sometimes mention Frederick Douglass' ‘What to the Slave is the Fourth of July’? - dated July 5th, 1852. Well, Douglass lived until 1895 and changed his views from the time he made that speech about the Declaration of Independence celebration.
His speech critical of the relevance of the Independence Day celebration in regard to those in slavery was before the founding of the Republican Party (in which he was an active member). It was before the Civil War, the D.C. Emancipation, the 1st and 2nd Confiscation Acts, the Emancipation Proclamation, the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, the Civil Rights legislation, election of blacks to Congress during Reconstruction, etc. For 54 years, he supported and fought for all of the achievements that helped free black people from chattel slavery and grant them equal opportunity.
Frederick Douglass became a great American patriot and Statesman!
So those blacks who like to recite Frederick Douglass as a reference should look at the "timeline" of his growth and development if they want to treat him fairly. He recognized and accepted the United States Constitution as a document for freedom, and not slavery. He served as an advisor to Presidents, recruited black soldiers for the Union Army, was appointed U.S. Marshall of the District of Columbus, was appointed as U.S. Deeds of Record for the District of Columbia, and was appointed U.S. Minister Resident & Consul General for the Republic of Haiti. Frederick Douglas was no half-baked revolutionary. He protested socialism and communism being imposed upon him. Frederick Douglass was one of the foremost abolitionists, and he was a great American hero!