frederick douglass speech transcript

WebAn excerpt from the 1847 Frederick Douglass speech given for the anniversary of the American Anti-Slavery Society. The cause of liberty may be stabbed by the men who glory in the deeds of your fathers. When the dogs in your streets, when the fowls of the air, when the cattle on your hills, when the fish of the sea, and the reptiles that crawl, shall be unable to distinguish the slave from a brute, thenwill I argue with you that the slave is a man! It makes its pathway over and under the sea, as well as on the earth. In speaking of the American church, however, let it be distinctly understood that I mean the great mass of the religious organizations of our land. Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us? They acknowledge it when they punish disobedience on the part of the slave. Sign up for NewsOne's email newsletter! How can we sing the Lords song in a strange land? You have no right to enjoy a childs share in the labor of your fathers, unless your children are to be blest by your labors. At some future period I will gladly avail myself of an opportunity to give this subject a full and fair discussion. Fellow citizens, above your national tumultuous joy I hear the mournful wail of millions whose chains heavy and grievous yesterday are today rendered more intolerable by the jubilant shouts that reach them. Standing here identified with the American bondsmen, making his wrongs mine. It is carried on in all the large towns and cities in one-half of this confederacy; and millions are pocketed every year, by dealers in this horrid traffic. Is it at the gateway? But, while the river may not be turned aside, it may dry up, and leave nothing behind but the withered branch, and the unsightly rock, to howl in the abyss-sweeping wind, the sad tale of departed glory. When you can point to any such laws, in reference to the beasts of the field, then I may consent to argue the manhood of the slave. But, such is not the state of the case. Its quite a remarkable speech as Douglass in a way reenacts his own journey in appreciation for the work that Lincoln did, not just for blacks, but for whites in this country. The style and title of your sovereign people (in which you now glory) was not then born. WebIn December 1860, the great American orator and former slave Frederick Douglass delivered one of his finest speeches, A Plea for Free Speech in Boston. In it, he boldly declared that liberty is meaningless where the right to utter ones thoughts and The simple story of it is that, 76 years ago, the people of this country were British subjects. Would you argue more, and denounce less, would you persuade more, and rebuke less, your cause would be much more likely to succeed. The anguish of my boyish heart was intense; and I was often consoled, when speaking to my mistress in the morning, to hear her say that the custom was very wicked; that she hated to hear the rattle of the chains, and the heart-rending cries. This 4th of July is yours, not mine. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. and am I, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar, and to confess the benefits and express devout gratitude for the blessings resulting from your independence to us? Frederick Douglass: (09:38) What would be thought of an instrument, drawn up, legally drawn up, for the purpose of entitling the city of Rochester to a track of land, in which no mention of land was made? Read the full text below of the sage words from one of the greatest orators of all time. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices, more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these United States, at this very hour. To side with the right, against the wrong, with the weak against the strong, and with the oppressed against the oppressor! One is struck with the difference between the attitude of the American church towards the anti-slavery movement, and that occupied by the churches in England towards a similar movement in that country. But now is the time, the important time. I lived on Philpot Street, Fells Point, Baltimore, and have watched from the wharves, the slave ships in the Basin, anchored from the shore, with their cargoes of human flesh, waiting for favorable winds to waft them down the Chesapeake. Sydney Smith tells us that men seldom eulogize the wisdom and virtues of their fathers, but to excuse some folly or wickedness of their own. Youmay rejoice,Imust mourn. There was, at that time, a grand slave mart kept at the head of Pratt Street, by Austin Woldfolk. Oppression makes a wise man mad. had I the ability, and could I reach the nations ear, I would, to-day, pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, Mr. President, Friends and Fellow Citizens: He who could address this audience without a quailing sensation, has But it is answered in reply to all this, that precisely what I have now denounced is, in fact, guaranteed and sanctioned by the Constitution of the United States; that the right to hold and to hunt slaves is a part of that Constitution framed by the illustrious Fathers of this Republic. I leave, therefore, the great deeds of your fathers to other gentlemen whose claim to have been regularly descended will be less likely to be disputed than mine! Now, take the Constitution according to its plain reading, and I defy the presentation of a single pro-slavery clause in it. Standing with God and the crushed and bleeding slave on this occasion, I will, in the name of humanity which is outraged, in the name of liberty which is fettered, in the name of the constitution and the Bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon, dare to call in question and to denounce, with all the emphasis I can command, everything that serves to perpetuate slavery the great sin and shame of America! Who so obdurate and dead to the claims of gratitude, that would not thankfully acknowledge such priceless benefits? But I admit, where all is plain, there is nothing to be argued. I have better employments for my time and strength than such arguments would imply. In the deep still darkness of midnight, I have been often aroused by the dead heavy footsteps, and the piteous cries of the chained gangs that passed our door. Mr. President, Friends and Fellow Citizens: He who could address this audience without a quailing sensation, has stronger nerves than I have. A speech given at Rochester, New York, July 5, 1852 . In a case like that, the dumb might eloquently speak, and the lame man leap as an hart.. The drove moves tardily. They petitioned and remonstrated; they did so in a decorous, respectful, and loyal manner. a horrible reptile is coiled up in your nations 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, andlet the weight of twenty millions crush and destroy it forever! We are called upon to prove that we are men. It is fashionable to do so; but there was a time when to pronounce against England, and in favor of the cause of the colonies, tried mens souls. Fellows citizens, pardon me and allow me to ask, why am I called to speak here today? It carries your minds back to the day, and to the act of your great deliverance; and to the signs, and to the wonders, associated with that act, and that day. Suicide Note Revealed After Shocking Death, Mississippi Cops Beat, Waterboarded Handcuffed Black Men, Shot 1 For Dating White Women': Lawyers, Indicted! But, your fathers, who had not adopted the fashionable idea of this day, of the infallibility of government, and the absolute character of its acts, presumed to differ from the home government in respect to the wisdom and the justice of some of those burdens and restraints. Of this sort of change they are always strongly in favor. You may well cherish the memory of such men. If any man in this assembly thinks differently from me in this matter, and feels able to disprove my statements, I will gladly confront him at any suitable time and place he may select. WebA speech celebrating both Lincoln and African Americans freedom wrought by Lincoln. Behold the practical operation of this internal slave-trade, the American slave-trade, sustained by American politics and America religion. America is false to the past, false to the present and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future. From Boston to London is now a holiday excursion. But, to proceed. You can bare your bosom to the storm of British artillery to throw off a threepenny tax on tea; and yet wring the last hard-earned farthing from the grasp of the black laborers of your country. Nations do not now stand in the same relation to each other that they did ages ago. It is not that pure and undefiled religion which is from above, and which is first pure, then peaceable, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits,without partiality, and without hypocrisy. But a religion which favors the rich against the poor; which exalts the proud above the humble; which divides mankind into two classes, tyrants and slaves; which says to the man in chains,stay there; and to the oppressor,oppress on; it is a religion which may be professed and enjoyed by all the robbers and enslavers of mankind; it makes God a respecter of persons, denies his fatherhood of the race, and tramples in the dust the great truth of the brotherhood of man. The hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed and its crimes against God and man must be denounced. The arm of the Lord is not shortened, and the doom of slavery is certain. I say it with a sad sense of disparity between us. Did this law concern the mint, anise, and cumin abridge the right to sing psalms, to partake of the sacrament, or to engage in any of the ceremonies of religion, it would be smitten by the thunder of a thousand pulpits. Speech-to-Text API for pre-recorded audio, powered by the worlds leading speech recognition engine. Standing, there, identified with the American bondman, making his wrongs mine, I do not hesitate to declare, with all my soul, that the character and conduct of this nation never looked blacker to me than on this 4th of July! Copyright 2023 Interactive One, LLC. It is the antagonistic force in your government, the only thing that seriously disturbs and endangers yourUnion. It is, however, a notable fact that, while so much execration is poured out by Americans upon those engaged in the foreign slave-trade, the men engaged in the slave-trade between the states pass without condemnation, and their business is deemed honorable. speech was delivered on July 5, 1852 as an address to the Rochester Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, New York. Before you read the speech you can follow these links to learn more about Douglasss life and the evolution of his thought in this period. Short bio of Frederick Douglass The Frederick Douglass Papers Library of Congress had I the ability, and could I reach the nations ear, I would, to-day, pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke. I am not that man. An American judge gets ten dollars for every victim he consigns to slavery, and five, when he fails to do so. President John F. Kennedy On July 4, 1962 President John F. Kennedy delivered this speech at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common. What was possible for him, he sincerely believed was possible for any man who was willing to work hard. The Sharps, the Clarksons, the Wilberforces, the Buxtons, and Burchells and the Knibbs, were alike famous for their piety, and for their philanthropy. R. R. Raymond) on the platform, are shining examples; and let me say further, that upon these men lies the duty to inspire our ranks with high religious faith and zeal, and to cheer us on in the great mission of the slaves redemption from his chains. They felt themselves the victims of grievous wrongs, wholly incurable in their colonial capacity. On July 5, 1852, eminent African American abolitionist Frederick Douglass delivered a brilliant speech to nearly six hundred people filling Rochester, New Yorks Corinthian Hall, as organized by the Rochester Ladies Anti-Slavery Sewing Society. And it would go hard with that politician who presumed to solicit the votes of the people without inscribing this motto on his banner. Add English on-screen subtitles for videos. I remember, also, that, as a people, Americans are remarkably familiar with all facts which make in their own favor. Frederick Douglass thought that such rationalizations were crap, and he had the right to think so. The slave holders themselves acknowledge it in the enactment of laws for their government. Would you argue more and denounce less? They showed forbearance; but that they knew its limits. The subject has been handled with masterly power by Lysander Spooner, Esq., by William Goodell, by Samuel E. Sewall, Esq., and last, though not least, by Gerritt Smith, Esq. There is hope in the thought, and hope is much needed, under the dark clouds which lower above the horizon. Fromwhat quarter, I beg to know, has proceeded a fire so deadly upon our ranks, during the last two years, as from the Northern pulpit? Stand by those principles, be true to them on all occasions, in all places, against all foes, and at whatever cost. I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! Let this damning fact be perpetually told. When you can point to any such laws in reference to the beasts of the field, then I may consent to argue the manhood of the slave. The principles contained in that instrument are saving principles. There, the question of emancipation was a high religious question. The anti-slavery movementtherewas not an anti-church movement, for the reason that the church took its full share in prosecuting that movement: and the anti-slavery movement in this country will cease to be an anti-church movement, when the church of this country shall assume a favorable, instead of a hostile position towards that movement. Standing with God and the crushed and bleeding slave on this occasion, I will in the name of humanity, which is outraged in the name of Liberty, which is fettered in the name of the constitution and the Bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon dare to call and question and to denounce with all the emphasis I can command everything that serves to perpetuate slavery, the great sin and shame of America. I will not equivocate; I will not excuse; I will use the severest language I can command; and yet not one word shall escape me that any man, whose judgment is not blinded by prejudice, or who is not at heart a slaveholder, shall not confess to be right and just. Must I undertake to prove that the slave is a man? Space is comparatively annihilated. That I am here to-day is, to me, a matter of astonishment as well as of gratitude. Follow the drove to New Orleans. See this drove sold and separated forever; and never forget the deep, sad sobs that arose from that scattered multitude. The madness of this course, we believe, is admitted now, even by England; but we fear the lesson is wholly lost on our present ruler. I trust, however, that mine will not be so considered. These ministers make religion a cold and flinty-hearted thing, having neither principles of right action, nor bowels of compassion. I will use the severest language I can command. You could instruct me in regard to them. WebFrederick Douglass speech Historical Document "The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro" 1852 Resource Bank Contents Click here for the text of this historical document. Is that a question for Republicans? The time was when such could be done. The fate of many a slave has depended upon the turn of a single card; and many a child has been snatched from the arms of its mother by bargains arranged in a state of brutal drunkenness. Such people lived then, had lived before, and will, probably, ever have a place on this planet; and their course, in respect to any great change, (no matter how great the good to be attained, or the wrong to be redressed by it), may be calculated with as much precision as can be the course of the stars. Mr. President, Friends and Fellow Citizens: He who could address this audience nor grace my speech with any high sounding exordium. The causes which led to the separation of the colonies from the British crown have never lacked for a tongue. On the other hand it will be found to contain principles and purposes, entirely hostile to the existence of slavery. For there, they that carried us away captive, required of us a song; and they who wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. Their opposition to the then dangerous thought was earnest and powerful; but, amid all their terror and affrighted vociferations against it, the alarming and revolutionary idea moved on, and the country with it. Then would my task be light and my burden easy and delightful? To do so would be to make myself ridiculous and to offer an insult to your understanding. Whether we turn to the declarations of the past or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. And am I therefore called upon to bring our humble offering to the national alter and to confess the benefits and express devout gratitude for the blessings resulting from your independence to us? who stand as the very lights of the church, have shamelessly given the sanction of religion and the Bible to the whole slave system. Must I argue that a system thus marked with blood, and stained with pollution, iswrong? 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. Fellow Citizens, I am not wanting in respect for the fathers of this republic. Need I tell you that the Jews are not the only people who built the tombs of the prophets, and garnished the sepulchres of the righteous? Frederick Douglass: (02:57) You declare, before the world, and are understood by the world to declare, that you hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal; and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; and that, among these are, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; and yet, you hold securely, in a bondage which, according to your own Thomas Jefferson, is worse than ages of that which your fathers rose in rebellion to oppose, aseventh partof the inhabitants of your country. In that instrument I hold there is neither warrant, license, nor sanction of the hateful thing; but, interpreted as it ought to be interpreted, the Constitution is a GLORIOUS LIBERTY DOCUMENT. You shed tears over fallen Hungary, and make the sad story of her wrongs the theme of your poets, statesmen and orators, till your gallant sons are ready to fly to arms to vindicate her cause against her oppressors; but, in regard to the ten thousand wrongs of the American slave, you would enforce the strictest silence, and would hail him as an enemy of the nation who dares to make those wrongs the subject of public discourse! It destroys your moral power abroad; it corrupts your politicians at home. May of Syracuse, and my esteemed friend (Rev. The blessings in which you this day rejoice are not enjoyed in common. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth.. Section 107, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Convert your audio or video into 99% accurate text by a professional. Frederick Douglass: (01:08) It was, Milloy continued, a critique of a nation that claimed to hold dear the principles of freedom, justice and equality even as it enslaved black people.. What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? He is a bird for the sportsmans gun. The manhood of the slave is conceded. will be found by Americans. From police shootings to the wage gap to crippling stereotypes (and everything in between), there are too many parallels today with what Douglass described in his speech to white America, including this relevant line: This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. It has made itself the bulwark of American slavery, and the shield of American slave-hunters. What to the Slave is the 4th of July? Speech Transcript by Frederick Douglass, Congressional Testimony & Hearing Transcripts. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence bequeathed by your fathers is shared by you, not by me. There is not a man beneath the canopy of heaven, that does not know that slavery is wrong for him. The flesh-mongers gather up their victims by dozens, and drive them, chained, to the general depot at Baltimore. Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. Their solid manhood stands out the more as we contrast it with these degenerate times. On what branch of the subject do the people of this country need light? Great streams are not easily turned from channels, worn deep in the course of ages. It is a fact, that whatever makes for the wealth or for the reputation of Americans, and can be had cheap! I doubt if there be another nation on the globe, having the brass and the baseness to put such a law on the statute-book. When the dogs in your street, when the fowls of the air, when the cattle on your hills, when the fish of the sea and the reptiles that crawl shall be unable to distinguish the slave from a brute, then I will argue with you that the slave is a man. Calculate how much it costs to transcribe, caption, or subtitle your content. To me the American slave-trade is a terrible reality. You have already declared it. A feeling has crept over me, quite unfavorable to the exercise of my limited powers of speech. Fellow-citizens, I shall not presume to dwell at length on the associations that cluster about this day. That, which is inhuman cannot be divine. Must I argue the wrongfulness of slavery? Their statesmanship looked beyond the passing moment, and stretched away in strength into the distant future. Become a freelancer and work on your own terms. They are food for the cotton-field, and the deadly sugar-mill. What point in the anti-slavery creed would you have me argue? weeping, as she thinks of the mother from whom she has been torn! At a time like this, scorching irony not convincing argument is needed. But the church of this country is not only indifferent to the wrongs of the slave, it actually takes sides with the oppressors. They were peace men; but they preferred revolution to peaceful submission to bondage. Would to God, both for your sakes and ours, that an affirmative answer could be truthfully returned to those questions. Walled cities and empires have become unfashionable. For who is there so cold, that a nations sympathy could not warm him? I know that apologies of this sort are generally considered flat and unmeaning. here lies the merit, and the one which, of all others, seems unfashionable in our day. Friends and citizens, I need not enter further into the causes which led to this anniversary. Transcripts & captions for a better media workflow. Frederick Douglass: (10:31) They may also rise in wrath and fury, and bear away, on their angry waves, the accumulated wealth of years of toil and hardship. Towards the end of What? These wretched people are to be sold singly, or in lots, to suit purchasers. Thu 5 Jul 2018 07.00 EDT Last modified on Wed 24 Jul 2019 11.58 EDT. You have already declared it. You glory in your refinement and your universal education yet you maintain a system as barbarous and dreadful as ever stained the character of a nation a system begun in avarice, supported in pride, and perpetuated in cruelty. To arrest it, to put an end to it, this nation keeps a squadron, at immense cost, on the coast of Africa. I scout the idea that the question of the constitutionality or unconstitutionality of slavery is not a question for the people. WebFrederick Douglass, July 5, 1852 INTRODUCTION (Exordium) 1. WATCH VIDEO: Should Black Americans Celebrate Independence Day? They, that can, may. Frederick Douglass thought that such rationalizations were crap, and he had the right to think so. With little experience and with less learning, I have been able to throw my thoughts hastily and imperfectly together; and Under Title 17 U.S.C. That year will come, and freedoms reign. There is blasphemy in the thought. To say now that America was right, and England wrong, is exceedingly easy. For it is not light that is needed, but fire. In the solitude of my spirit, I see clouds of dust raised on the highways of the South; I see the bleeding footsteps; I hear the doleful wail of fettered humanity, on the way to the slave markets, where the victims are to be sold like horses, sheep, and swine, knocked off to the highest bidder. Frederick Douglass: (03:37) I was glad to find one who sympathized with me in my horror. It is a religion for oppressors, tyrants, man-stealers, andthugs. This trade is one of the peculiarities of American institutions. Is that a question for Republicans? The Lords of Buffalo, the Springs of New York, the Lathrops of Auburn, the Coxes and Spencers of Brooklyn, the Gannets and Sharps of Boston, the Deweys of Washington, and other great religious lights of the land have, in utter denial of the authority ofHimby whom they professed to be called to the ministry, deliberately taught us, against the example or the Hebrews and against the remonstrance of the Apostles, they teachthat we ought to obey mans law before the law of God. Fully appreciating the hardship to be encountered, firmly believing in the right of their cause, honorably inviting the scrutiny of an on-looking world, reverently appealing to heaven to attest their sincerity, soundly comprehending the solemn responsibility they were about to assume, wisely measuring the terrible odds against them, your fathers, the fathers of this republic, did, most deliberately, under the inspiration of a glorious patriotism, and with a sublime faith in the great principles of justice and freedom, lay deep the corner-stone of the national superstructure, which has risen and still rises in grandeur around you. be warned! It is a slander upon their memory, at least, so I believe. Resolved, That these united colonies are, and of right, ought to be free and Independent States; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown; and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, dissolved.. They who did so were accounted in their day, plotters of mischief, agitators and rebels, dangerous men. Frederick Douglass: (00:26) A RESTful API to access Revs workforce of fast, high quality transcriptionists and captioners. At the very moment that they are thanking God for the enjoyment of civil and religious liberty, and for the right to worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences, they are utterly silent in respect to a law which robs religion of its chief significance, and makes it utterly worthless to a world lying in wickedness.

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