A LOT OF AFRICAN AMERICANS KNOW JULY 4TH AS A HOLIDAY. Either you get out of school, got out of work, went to see the fun parade and the fire works. While in school we, as Black People, were not taught both sides of Independence Day history. If my job would open their doors I would be more than glad to walk into a place I hate and give them 8 hrs for America's 24.
Fredrick Douglas said,
“Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us,” he continued. “The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common…The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.”
I mean no Disrespect to no one, I read history outside of my classroom. My Respect to You!
This Fourth of July is yours, not mine,” Frederick Douglass said on July 5, 1852. “You may rejoice, I must mourn." (Courtesy Photo/Wikimedia)
Since this country’s Declaration of Independence in 1776 from Great Britain, generations of Blacks have had mixed feelings about its true meaning to us. For Whites, their extrication from the British motherland gave sovereignty to the settlers, the right to govern and conduct themselves as free men. For million of Blacks, however, independence was little more than free reign for those same Whites who fought for their freedom to continue their practice of enslaving millions of members of our race.
Frederick Douglass, who was born enslaved but went on to become a well-known abolitionist and orator during the 1800s, summarized the plight of Blacks decades after the declaration was signed. “I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary!” he said on July 5, 1852 in his famous speech, “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro." He delivered the speech to abolitionists in his hometown of Rochester, N.Y.
“Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us,” he continued. “The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common…The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.”
Two-hundred and thirty six years after the declaration was signed, many Blacks are conflicted about celebrating July 4th, one of the most popular holidays in the United States. Some feel it is un-American not to
