Frederick Douglass and the Fourth of July: speaking truth to America

On July 5th, 1852, Frederick Douglass, one of the greatest orators of all time, delivered what was arguably the century's most powerful abolition speech. At a time of year where American freedom is celebrated across the nation, Douglass eloquently summoned the country to resolve the contradiction between slavery and the founding principles of our country. In this book, James A. Colaiaco vividly recreates the turbulent historical context of Douglass' speech and delivers a colorful portrait of the country in the turbulent years leading to the civil war. This book provides a fascinating new perspective on a critical time in American history. A critical evaluation of the address the preeminent African American abolitionist and orator gave in observance of Independence Day.On July 5th, 1852, Frederick Douglass, one of the greatest orators of all time, delivered what was arguably the century's most powerful abolition speech. At a time of year where American freedom is celebrated across the nation, Douglass eloquently summoned the country to resolve the contradiction between slavery and the founding principles of our country. In this book, James A. Colaiaco vividly recreates the turbulent historical context of Douglass'speech and delivers a colorful portrait of the country in the tumultuous years leading to the Civil War. Now including a reader's guide with discussion points, this book provides a fascinating new perspective on a critical time in American history.Praise for Frederick Douglass and the Fourth of July“If you're feeling blasé about this year's observance of our oldest patriotic holiday, James A. Colaiaco's Frederick Douglass and the Fourth of July should stir you out of complacency.... What makes [it] essential reading is its deepening of one's appreciation for how the color-blind, malleable Constitution is a tissue of ambiguity and compromises.” —The Wall Street Journal“Colaiaco provides the most complete exposition yet of Douglass's constitutional abolitionism... [He] performs a vital service in reviving the moral spirit of America's greatest exemplar of black manhood.” —Claremont Review of Books“[Colaiaco's] examination of this long-forgotten masterpiece is long overdue and superbly realized.” —Harold Holzer, author of Lincoln at Cooper Union, co-chairman U.S. Lincoln Bicentennial Commission Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 8 Prologue......Page 10 1 Frederick Douglass and the Fourth of July......Page 16 2 Narrating America’s Revolutionary Past......Page 42 3 Denouncing America’s Present......Page 60 4 Converting to the United States Constitution......Page 82 5 The Ominous Future: A Nation on the Brink......Page 118 6 The Dred Scott Decision and the American Dilemma......Page 148 7 The United States Constitution Is Anti-Slavery......Page 172 Epilogue......Page 198 Notes......Page 214 Selected Bibliography......Page 238 Acknowledgments......Page 248 B......Page 250 D......Page 251 F......Page 252 L......Page 253 P......Page 254 W......Page 255 Z......Page 256 Evaluates Douglass's famous Fourth of July speech and considers his lifelong dedication to refuting misconceptions about the Constitution's alleged support of slavery and the rights granted to black Americans by the phrase, "all men are created equal."