Frederick Douglass
For Douglass, the declaration of independence on the fourth of July was only meant for the whites (Foner, 1950). He expressed his resent on this celebration because even after the said independence, discrimination still lurks within the society of America. In his work, one can feel the feeling of anger and disapproval of the author against the proclaimed independence. However, his feeling is not purely based on emotions, rants, and personal resentment (Foner, 1950). The author has supporting statements and a logical flow of the arguments.
In his speech, it can be implied that he wanted to talk to the future generation regarding the campaign against anti-slavery. It can be seen that equality must reign in all people regardless of origin and race. He insists that the independence should not be limited to the few; instead, what he wanted is true independence, which means that freedom, must be shared with anyone, thus, relinquishing the people from the chains of discrimination and prejudice (Foner, 1950).
The speech implied that the legacy of the people who worked to gain the independence centuries ago. Their works should be continued in a sense that people nowadays should practice patriotism and equality. The american people should practice the three ideologies of the American society, and those are equal rights, freedom of expression and action, and democracy. (Foner, 1950) All of these must be done with sincerity and with a strong desire for independence, just as how Frederick Douglass showed his passion in his speech.
Sojourner Truth
The woman in the name of Sojourner Truth emphasized equality of women to men through her actions done in the story of Gage. She defended women even against the religious people who thought that women are in no place to be equal with God since Christ is a man. Her actions are bold and straightforward, and what she did was a feat of bravery for defending all women against the twisted reasoning of those who claimed themselves as righteous (Stanton, Anthony, & Gage, 1969).
In addition to this, the fact that she has a dark skin tone proved her unyielding determination to defend the equality of women to men. Note that she represented all the women, and not only the women of her race, so it can be said that she did not discriminate everyone nor display claims of superiority. What she only wanted was to make men realize that women can also do what men can do, and that men should respect women and treat them as equal (Stanton, Anthony, & Gage, 1969).
It is not a good example to show the superiority of gender by referencing to the gender of an influential icon. In the story, the ministers used Christ to display the superiority of man over women (Stanton, Anthony, & Gage, 1969). However, this is not a logical argument to begin with. When given an equal opportunity, women can also do the same and make legacies. It is not the gender that must be given attention and must be used as reference. Like what Sojourner Truth did to defend women, people should work together to create equal opportunities for all. Gender is not a basis, and the way man and woman are created, as stated in the Bible, should not determine superiority. Finally, if everyone does not even think of being superior over other people, then there will be no problems and false claims of superiority. After all, without the efforts done by both men and women, society would not have existed, and the state of the world will be different if no humans were created due to the separation of genders.
David Walker
David Walker wanted the Black Americans to be recognized in the society. He wanted to make people realize that they are also human, just like the white people who claimed superiority over the black people. It is just that they are born with different skin colors (Wilentz, 1995). Colors have nothing to do with power and superiority. It is the false ideologies of some arrogant people that make the rest of their race think about the superiority (Wilentz, 1995).
According to Walker, there was never a mentioning of hierarchy in the human history telling that color is a basis of ranking among different race (Wilentz, 1995). In reality, it is just the thinking of the people. Take the white people of America as an example. They claimed to be superior, because they think that America belongs to them, and that other people living within the borders must be ousted because they do not belong in American lands (Wilentz, 1995). However, if that will be the basis of the white Americans, then they are the ones who do not belong within the American borders. It is because Black people are the first inhabitants of America. They were the natives who were thought to be discovered along with the island. If that was the case, then the ones who truly discovered America were not the ones who are written in the history. The original inhabitants lived in the land for a long time before being discovered. They are just colonized by the foreign people, who have greater capabilities and arsenals to make voyage and discover new places. It is just that these people were not contented and satisfied with the possessions they have so they resort to colonization and claim places which they did not truly own. In this case, it is not history which will determine superiority and belongingness to the place, because if history will be the basis, then the white people should leave American lands by now. However, that is not the case. The ownership of the land is not important. It is not who should live in this place first, or who made the place prosper. Instead, it is the unity and equality that must exist within the borders to create harmony and peaceful living.
Comparison of the Three Responses
Douglass, Truth, and Walker all represented the Black American society with strong convictions. In what they had done to abolish slavery, it can be said that they are all authorities when it comes to making people realize the mistakes of the stereotypes. In all their works and deeds, they have defended their race in different ways. Douglass defended Black Americans in terms of freedom and independence; Truth defends women against gender inequality; and Walker in terms of historical accounts. Being able to defend the Black Americans in different aspects and perspectives would only mean that there are strong driving forces for the desired equality.
Despite the differences in their perspectives and views about th abolition of slavery, the important is that they are not just talking about freedom from being a slave. Their works and actions have actually strong bases from which they have gotten their argument, so one cannot say that they are illogical and biased. In addition to this, they are all influential in their own way because of their passion and strong will to move people.
References
Foner, P. (1950). The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro" The Life and Writings of Frederick Douglass, 2.
Staton, E., Anthony, S., & Gage, M. (1969). Modern History Sourcebook: Sojourner Truth: A'nt I a Woman? History of Woman Suffrage, 1, 11417.
Wilentz, S. (1995). David Walker's Appeal. David Walker's Appeal, In Four Articles: Together With A Preamble To The Coloured Citizens Of The World, But In Particular, And Very Expressly, To Those Of The United States Of America.
