Frederick Douglass Bio

Frederick Douglass, born February 1818, was an African American abolitionist who escaped slavery and fought for equal rights freedom.




Quotes:


"The fact is, ladies and gentlemen, the distance between this platform and the slave plantation, from which I escaped, is considerable- and the difficulties to be overcome in getting from the latter to the former, are by no means slight.


Frederick is saying how it will take a while for African American slaves to gain freedom.


"What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim.


He means that although 4th of July is celebrated because of freedom, slaves don't have their freedom yet and consider the day to be injustice.


"...I see the bleeding footsteps...on the way to the slave-markets, where victims are to be sold like horses, sheep, and swine..."


Frederick says this because slaves were considered as property and were sold like they were nothing.


"An American judge gets ten dollars for every victim he consigns to slavery, and five, when he fails to do so..."


He's basically saying that the Fugitive Slave Law is not right since judges are getting money.


"The arm of the Lord is not shortened, and the doom of slavery is certain."


Frederick has confidence that slavery will end by saying this.

Frederick Douglass

Abolitionist and Woman's Movements

Frederick Douglass wrote his speech about slavery in America since he was a slave at the time. He described how slaves were considered as property ad were sold like animals. Abolitionists tried to help slaves but slaves were often killed if they didn't obey orders. In order for them to gain freedom, they would have to risk to escape to the North. Slaves were black and were mistreated due to color/race. They were forced to work under harsh conditions and were feed little food. During 4th of July, Frederick said that it wasn't an independence day because there wasn't freedom.

The other speech was about Women's Right's. Women were expressing that there was inequality between them and males. Women were free, however they had limited rights such as no voting, etc. Nobody besides women tried to help them gain their rights back. Women were mistreated because of gender.


Both speeches have a few similarities. Women and slaves were fighting for freedom because their rights were restricted from them. Also, their education was denied as well as voting rights.