On the recordJanuary 1, 1881
They were hated because they had been slaves, hated because they were now free, and hated because of those who had freed them.
Said by
Frederick Douglass
Source
gutenberg.orgThey were hated because they had been slaves, hated because they were now free, and hated because of those who had freed them.
From his autobiography, detailing the complex reasons for the pervasive hatred directed at newly emancipated Black Americans.
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More from Frederick Douglass
Treason had shot its poisonous roots deeper, and had spread its death-dealing branches further than any northern calculation had covered.
It had no interest in recognizing or preserving any of the ties that bind families together or to their homes.
True it is that this faith was many times shaken by passing events, but never destroyed.
We (the people of the North) are a charitable people, and in the excess of this feeling we were disposed to put the very best construction upon the strange behavior of our southern brethren.