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The Declaration of Independence signed by the thirteen rebellious colonies of British North America in 1776 outlines the reasons why they decided to dissolve their political connection to the empire. The document gives a lengthy list of reasons, from tasting the colonies without their consent to stationing troops in the peoples homes regardless of their willingness to provide accommodation ( Declaration ). What unites all these grievances is the authors opinion that they went against the best interests of the colonies and, as such, were tyrannical, which is why the Founding Fathers chose separatism over injustice. The latter opinion is based on the premise that all men are equal and with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness ( Declaration ). Thus, the Declaration ultimately claims that the tyrannical actions of the British Crown went against natural human rights.
Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave and a prominent abolitionist, pointed out that slavery made a mockery of these rights in his famous 1852 speech. He points out that a black slave is undoubtedly a human, yet he does not have the unalienable right to liberty which the Declaration presumable expands to all men (Douglass). Apart from that, he notes that the slaveholders exploit their bonded labor to work them without wages, thus, preventing even a theoretical opportunity for them to improve their lot (Douglass). This goes against the right to the pursuit of happiness, which the Declaration also proclaims to be fundamental. After that, the author ridicules the American denunciations of tyrants as first-class hypocrisy for as long as the United States as a nation uphold slavery (Douglass). Douglass explains that slaves are still subjected to a tyranny much worse than the one suffered by the Founding Fathers and, as long as it continues, the promise of the Declaration of Independence remains unfulfilled.
Works Cited
Declaration of Independence. Archives.org, Web.
Douglass, Frederick. What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? Black Past, Web.
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