Conversation

Ted Cruz
@tedcruz
(1) This speech was given in 1852, before the Civil War, when the abomination of slavery still existed. Thanks to Douglass and so many other heroes, we ended that grotesque evil and have made enormous strides to protecting the civil rights of everybody.
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Ted Cruz
@tedcruz
(2) Douglass was not anti-American; he was, rightly and passionately, anti-slavery. Indeed, he concluded the speech as follows:
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Ted Cruz
@tedcruz
“Allow me to say, in conclusion, notwithstanding the dark picture I have this day presented, of the state of the nation, I do not despair of this country.
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Ted Cruz
@tedcruz
“There are forces in operation, which must inevitably, work the downfall of slavery. ‘The arm of the Lord is not shortened,’ and the doom of slavery is certain.
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Ted Cruz
@tedcruz
“I, therefore, leave off where I began, with hope. While drawing encouragement from ‘the Declaration of Independence,’ the great principles it contains, and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is also cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age.”
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Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
@esglaude
Replying to
@tedcruz
But the criticism that frames the speech cannot be left behind so easily. Douglass maintains hope, but he doesn’t ignore the evils that threaten to undermine this precious experiment in democracy.
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