Frederick Douglass

At a time when it feels like the president, Congress, and the judicial branches of government have collectively declared war on Black and brown America, one cannot help but be reminded of Frederick Douglass’ iconic speech, “What to the slave is the Fourth of July?” delivered on July 5, 1852, in Rochester, New York.

“Frederick Douglass” the opera has rarely been performed since its debut in 1991. Gil Rose, artistic director of both Odyssey Opera and Boston Modern Opera Project (BMOP) is resurrecting the production with a concert-style performance this month.

The Massachusetts State Senate has added a bust of abolitionist activist Frederick Douglass to its chamber on Beacon Hill. It’s the Senate’s first state-commissioned bust of an African American.

The first statue in Europe of a Black statesman was unveiled in Belfast in July to honor the escaped slave Frederick Douglass, who visited the city many times while he was in Ireland during 1845.

Despite America’s great success in business, poverty is still a discredit to the nation. Conservative pundits make the rate of poverty acceptable by creating the fiction that poverty is a Black affliction.