Frederick Douglass's July 4th Speech, As Read by His Descendants

"What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July?"

In 2020, five of abolitionist Frederick Douglass’s descendants marked July 4th reciting one of his most famous speeches.

In a video for NPR, Douglass's descendants recited excerpts from his address, "The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro."

Douglass delivered the address in 1852 for the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society's 4th of July celebration. (TIME)

In his address, Douglass, an abolitionist and former enslaved person, noted the contradictions of the holiday. (TIME)

Historian David Blight: "...the good abolitionists...[squirmed] as he [listed] America’s contradictions.” (The Hill)

Here's what Douglass said in his speech.

That's All!