On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass addressed the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society, in Corinthian Hall, Rochester, New York. “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July”, as the speech is now known, is both a searing indictment of the continued existence of slavery in the United States and a call for hope and optimism for the future of the nation.
At just more than 10,000 words, the full speech is over an hour long. Many abridged recordings are available, including readings by:
- James Earl Jones (July 5, 2004)
- Danny Glover (October 5, 2005)
- Ossie Davis (June 30, 2009)
- Morgan Freeman
- Descendants of Frederick Douglass (July 3, 2020)
However, American Studies professor Andrew S. Bibby argues that “… abridging his speech risks distorting Douglass’s intentions, cheapening his legacy, and robbing his great oration of its educational value.”
The full text of the speech can be found at TeachingAmericanHistory.org