The task before me is one which requires much previous thought and study for its proper performance. A feeling has crept over me, quite unfavorable to the exercise of my limited powers of speech. I do not remember ever to have appeared as a speaker before any assembly more shrinkingly, nor with greater distrust of my ability, than I do this day. President, Friends and Fellow Citizens: He who could address this audience without a quailing sensation, has stronger nerves than I have. Whatever the expectations of his audience on that 76th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Douglass used the occasion not to celebrate the nation’s triumphs but to remind all of its continuing enslavement of millions of people. On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass was invited to address the citizens of his hometown, Rochester, New York.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |