BlackFacts.com presents the black fact of the day for July 5.

Frederick Douglass gave his speech "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?".

He was an African American abolitionist, orator, newspaper publisher, and author. He became the first Black U.S. marshal.

Douglass was born into slavery on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Talbot County, Maryland. When he was seven years old, he was sent to his master, Captain Aaron Anthony, at a nearby plantation.

On September 3, 1838, Douglass escaped from slavery. With identification borrowed from a free Black seaman, he traveled to New York City.

He remained an avid reader throughout his adult life. In 1847, he began publishing his own abolitionist newsletter, the North Star. 

He became a powerful orator, often traveling six months out of the year to give lectures on abolition. 

When radical abolitionists, under the motto "No Union with Slaveholders", criticized Douglass's willingness to engage in dialogue with slave owners, he replied: "I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong."

In July 5, 1852, he  delivered his speech at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, held at Corinthian Hall in Rochester, New York.

The speech explores the constitutional and values-based arguments against the continued existence of Slavery in the United States.

Learn black history, teach black history at blackfacts.com

BlackFacts.com presents the black fact of the day for July 4.

Marian Anderson and Ralph Bunche receive the first Medals of Freedom.

She was an American singer, and an important figure in the struggle for African-American artists to overcome racial prejudice.

Bunche was an American political scientist, diplomat, member of the United Nations for more than two decades, activist of the US civil rights movement, and the first African American and first person of African descent to be awarded a Nobel Prize.

In 1955, Anderson became the first African American singer to perform as a member of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

Bunche was one of the leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for more than 20 years.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal are the highest civilian awards of the United States.

It was established in 1963 by President John F. Kennedy, superseding the Medal of Freedom that was established by President Harry S. Truman in 1945 to honor civilian service during World War II.

JFK’s assassination in November meant that he was not alive to present the awards at the  ceremony that December. His successor, Lyndon B. Johnson, presented them in his place. 

Learn black history, teach black history at blackfacts.com

BlackFacts.com presents the black fact of the day for July 3.

Jackie Robinson becomes the first African American to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

He was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era.

After demonstrating exceptional athletic ability during high school and junior college, he excelled at baseball, football, basketball, and track at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

He left UCLA in 1941 and briefly played professional football before being drafted into the U.S. Army. During his service, he refused to sit at the back of a bus and was threatened with a court-martial, but the charges were dropped and he was given an honorable discharge in 1945.

Robinson made his major league debut in April 1947. The chief problem he had to overcome was controlling his fiery temper in the face of continual racial slurs from the crowds and other ballplayers, including some of his own teammates.

After retiring from baseball early in 1957, Robinson engaged in business and in civil rights activism. He was a spokesperson for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and made appearances with Martin Luther King, Jr.

Robinson's major league debut brought an end to approximately sixty years of segregation in professional baseball, known as the baseball color line.

Robinson's character, his use of nonviolence, and his talent challenged the traditional basis of segregation that had then marked many other aspects of American life.

Learn black history, teach black history at blackfacts.com