I reject it because I see in it evidence of an invention called into being by a well-defined motive, a motive sufficient to stamp it as a gross expedient to justify murderous assault upon a long enslaved and hence a hated people.
Douglass critiques the motives behind the lynching of Black individuals, highlighting the systemic racism involved.
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The laws which determine the destinies of individuals and nations are impartial and eternal.
My grandmother was all the world to me, and the thought of being separated from her was a most unwelcome suggestion to my affections and hopes.