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


  • New York City Loses Black Population Due to Lack of Affordable Housing
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    New York City Loses Black Population Due to Lack of Affordable Housing
    11 Aug 2023
    Leah Goodridge joins us from New York City to talk about that city’s loss of its Black population, 200,000 people in the last 20 years.
  • Jihad Abdulmumit on the Significance of Black August
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Jihad Abdulmumit on the Significance of Black August
    11 Aug 2023
    In August 2020 the late Glen Ford spoke to former political prisoner Jihad Abdulmumit of the Jericho Movement about the origins and importance of Black August.
  • Coup in Niger and the U.S. Response
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Coup in Niger and the U.S. Response
    11 Aug 2023
    Wilmer Leon and Margaret discussed the true reasons for antipathy towards Niger, and why other African nations are used as proxies for western interests.
  • Eritrea Celebrates Freedom
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Eritrea Celebrates Freedom
    09 Aug 2023
    Eritrea is an example of an independent and self-determining African state. Its people are rightly proud of their history.
  • ESSAY: Why Africa Must Unite, Kwame Nkrumah, 1963
    Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    ESSAY: Why Africa Must Unite, Kwame Nkrumah, 1963
    09 Aug 2023
    ​​​​​​Sixty years ago, Nkrumah told us why it was important that Africa unite. Today, his message and roadmap for Pan-African unity is needed more than ever.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us