“250 is a big thing,” said Cassie Brand, curator of rare books at WashU Libraries. “It has a whole fancy word — the semiquincentennial — and it’s really a time for us to think about the Declaration of Independence, the founding of our country, who we are now and who we want to be.”
Unalienable Rights: America at 250
When: 2-4 p.m. Thursday, July 2
Where: John M. Olin Library
How much: Free; registration requested
More info: WashU Libraries website
That question sits at the heart of “Unalienable Rights: America at 250,” a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding at 2 p.m. July 2 at Olin Library on the WashU Danforth Campus. The free event will feature a talk from Brand about the Declaration; a reading of Frederick Douglass’ speech, “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?”; and children’s activities, including a story time and coloring and button-making stations.
The event runs in conjunction with the “Unalienable Rights” exhibition, which runs through July 19 and spotlights the university’s rare 1776 Southwick broadside as well as other printings of the Declaration, from the first reprinting published by a woman to the copy that traveled aboard the Apollo 11. Each reprinting reflects our national fascination with the document.
“The Declaration has become so central to the American ideals that we still live with today — the ideals of freedom and equality,” Brand said. “We want people to think about the history of the Declaration over time, from the founding of the country to the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation, and if we’re living up to those ideals today.”
To that end, Brand thought it important to include Douglass’ seminal speech, “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” Delivered in 1852, a moment when over 3.2 million people were enslaved, the speech condemns Independence Day celebrations as “fraud, deception, impiety and hypocrisy — a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages.”
“Frederick Douglass’ speech underlines the hypocrisy of the country in that time period, and I’m hoping it’ll get people thinking, ‘Are there other things that we can be doing today to more fully live up to the Declaration’s ideals?’” Brand said.
Brand said WashU Libraries are proud to make these living documents accessible to the community.
“Special collections are so cool, because that document is from 1776, and we still have it today,” she said. “You can still see it, you can still read it. I’m hoping that when people see the Declaration of Independence, they’re inspired and excited about it.”
