Post #922912
2026-02-21 17:51 UTC
In August 1863, Frederick Douglass stopped recruiting Black soldiers. He forced the Union to confront its contradictions: unequal pay, denied rank…violence against Black troops. He walked into the WH, challenged Abraham Lincoln directly, and left unconvinced by policy but clear about power. He resumed speaking not because justice had been secured, but because pressure, not faith, is what moves a nation forward.
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Image: Recruiting broadside endorsed by Douglass (Gilder Lehrman).
#history
Replies (2)
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@Deglassco@mastodon.social 2026-02-21 17:55
Douglass had urged Black men to fight for freedom hundreds of times before. Then he stopped. In "Douglass’ Monthly," he wrote that he could no longer recruit “with a whole heart.” Black soldiers were paid less, barred from promotion, and executed or enslaved if captured. This was not moral exhaustion. It was leverage—withdrawal as exposure. 2/10 Image: From a series of "Carte de Visites" produced from his visit to Hillsdale College on January 21, 1863, 9 months before meeting with Lincoln..
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@oberstenzian@mastodon.social 2026-02-22 02:16
@Deglassco Fighting for the lesser of two evils. Yeah I’ll pass on that.