Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom

In the early 1850s, after his rupture with the Garrisonians, Douglass finds his views becoming increasingly militant. He consciously adopts the persona of an Old Testament prophet, chastising his country for its moral lapses and calling down the wrath of God on all slaveholders and those who enable them.

Douglass gives a memorable Fourth of July address to the Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society of Rochester in which he articulates his new philosophy on the slavery question. According to Blight, “He pulled no punches, making the good abolitionists and the Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society squirm as he dragged them through a litany of America’s contradictions” (233). After spending the bulk of his address pointing out the hypocrisy of celebrating Independence Day in a country that still condoned slavery, Douglass concludes by expressing his hope that universal emancipation can be achieved through constitutional means.

Douglass wrestles with an internal contradiction as a man of letters who advocates violence to guarantee human rights. Two issues help to fuel his rage during this time. The first is the proposal to relocate Black enslaved people to Africa, which Douglass sees as a disgraceful attempt to sweep the America’s race problem under the rug. The second is the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, which legally requires northerners to cooperate in returning runaways to their masters.