5 July 1852
Public argumentBook sources
Frederick Douglass challenges the nation’s celebration of liberty
Rochester, New York
Speaking to an antislavery gathering, Frederick Douglass contrasted celebrations of American independence with the enslavement of Black people. His address demanded that national professions of liberty be judged against slavery and its enforcement.
Dates preserve the source’s precision. This entry is part of a selected historical record; its qualifications and sources are retained below.
Context / qualification
The address commonly known as What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? was delivered on July 5. It was an abolitionist intervention, not a finding that slavery had ended.
Sources
- Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States, chapter 9, pp. 182–183; supplied print pages, edition/year unidentified
- Library of Congress: the Declaration’s legacy, Douglass address ↗