WATCH: What You Need To Know — July 3, 2020: Voices of Freedom: African American Oratorical Heroes

As many in America pause to observe the nation’s 244th birthday, the “What You Need To Know” news crew wants to celebrate some of our African American Heroes.

Here are just a few of the best speeches given by some of our best orators. Some of you may take this opportunity to reacquaint yourselves with these powerful speeches. Others may be reading them for the very first time. We hope you will take the time to read their words and reflect on their themes of freedom and the American dream. In chronological order:

1. “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro” By Frederick Douglass

On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass delivered this powerful speech to the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, New York.

2. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s “I Have a Dream” Speech

On August 28, 1963, Dr. King made his iconic speech during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

3. “Nobody’s Free Until Everybody’s Free” By Fannie Lou Hamer

Civil Rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer brought it with her stirring, “Nobody’s Free Until Everybody’s Free.”

4. Barbara Jordan’s 1976 Democratic National Convention Keynote Address

During her address at the Democratic National Convention, Jordan called the members of the Democratic Party to task to represent and advocate for all Americans and hold the country accountable for its promises to its diverse citizens. Barbara Jordan was the first African American and the first woman to deliver the keynote address at the 1976 DNC. 

5. President Obama: “Let Freedom Ring” Ceremony Commemorating the 50th Anniversary Of The March On Washington

On August 28, 2013, President Barack Obama commemorated the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington.

SUBSCRIBE to my newsletter, “What You Need to Know” http://bit.ly/2pRccKj

WATCH: What You Need To Know — July 3, 2020: Voices of Freedom: African American Oratorical Heroes  was originally published on blackamericaweb.com