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


  • Toni Morrison Nobel Lecture
    Toni Morrison
    Toni Morrison Nobel Lecture
    14 Aug 2019
    “Forget your name in the street; tell us what the world has been to you in the dark places and in the light.”
  • The Red Summer of 1919, Explained
    Ursula Wolfe-Rocca
    The Red Summer of 1919, Explained
    14 Aug 2019
    White mobs attacked Black neighborhoods in cities across the nation in 1919, but this time Blacks would not “turn the left cheek when smitten upon the right.”
  • Letters from Our Readers 
    Jahan Chowdhry, BAR Comments Editor
    Letters from Our Readers 
    14 Aug 2019
    This week we discuss the definition of concentration camps, the armed white right wing, and the criminal justice system.  We share your comments for “
  • BAR Book Forum: Nathan Schneider’s “​​​​​​​Everything for Everyone”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Nathan Schneider’s “​​​​​​​Everything for Everyone”
    14 Aug 2019
    Cooperation is a radical model that could fundamentally reorient our economy toward democracy.
  • BAR Book Forum: Azeezat Johnson, Remi Joseph-Salisbury and Beth Kamunge’s “The Fire Now”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Azeezat Johnson, Remi Joseph-Salisbury and Beth Kamunge’s “The Fire Now”
    14 Aug 2019
    A new book highlights what contemporary prohibitions on Black life look like in various geographical and socio-political spaces.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us