Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

"What to the Slave is the 4th of July?" read by Ossie Davis
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
01 Jul 2022
🖨️ Print Article

Black Agenda Radio · "What to the Slave is the 4th of July?" read by Ossie Davis

On July 5, 1852 Frederick Douglass was asked to speak on the topic of the nation’s independence celebration. Now known as "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?", the speech was a stinging indictment of slavery in the U.S., but the words are still relevant to Black people 170 years later. The late Ossie Davis read excerpts from Douglass’s remarks.

Slavery in U.S.
Frederick Douglass

Related Podcasts

Frederick Douglass
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
"What to the Slave is the 4th of July?" read by Ossie Davis
03 July 2024
As we grow closer to the Fourth of July, BAR once again shares
Twenty Dollars and Change: Harriet Tubman and the Ongoing Fight for Racial Justice and Democracy
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Twenty Dollars and Change: Harriet Tubman and the Ongoing Fight for Racial Justice and Democracy
03 March 2023
Black Agenda Radio July 1, 2022
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Black Agenda Radio July 1, 2022
01 July 2022
We discuss reproductive justice in the wake of the supreme court ruling which overturned the Roe v. Wade decision.

More Stories


  • Reality Check: Bank of England Governor Criticizes the Petrodollar!
    Cheikh Amma Diop
    Reality Check: Bank of England Governor Criticizes the Petrodollar!
    04 Sep 2019
    When a capitalist governor of an imperialist nation’s central bank says alternatives to the US dollar are necessary, big change is afoot.
  • BAR Book Forum: Paul Ortiz’s “An African American and Latinx History of the United States”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Paul Ortiz’s “An African American and Latinx History of the United States”
    04 Sep 2019
    The United States is based on a system of racial capitalism that endures to this day. 
  • BAR Book Forum: Tiffany King’s “The Black Shoals”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Tiffany King’s “The Black Shoals”
    04 Sep 2019
    Black abolition and Native decolonization have the unique capacity to end the “conquistador settler U.S. nation” and make way for something else.
  • Anthem 4 Rappers Wrapped in The Flag
    by Louis Jefferson
    Anthem 4 Rappers Wrapped in The Flag
    04 Sep 2019
    Oh Jay Can U C By the dawn of Imperialist greed They will eat u 2 After they fatten u up to deceive U took the bait  So they call u great
  • The Black Misleadership Class Shuffles Along and Rides Again
    Anonymous
    The Black Misleadership Class Shuffles Along and Rides Again
    04 Sep 2019
    The president of predominantly Black Hampton University debased himself by speaking at Liberty University, founded by the Christian racist Jerry Falwell.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us