Answer: (This is a little late, but here) He condemns America of betraying its founding principles, history, and present. The audience must carry out the wishes of the country's founders. "Your 4th of July is a sham," Douglass tells the audience, "your boasted liberty, an unholy license [for enslaving blacks]." At Corinthian Hall in Rochester, New York, he delivered a speech commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence. “This Fourth of July is yours, not mine, You may rejoice, I must mourn,” Douglass said.