In reading Langston Hughes’ 1935 poem, “Let America Be America Again,” I couldn’t help but notice the similarities in his sentiments to those of Frederick Douglass in his 1852 Independence Day speech, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” Both authors fervently describe the inequalities they see in America, the exclusion they feel from the idea of “America,” and critique the country’s hypocrisy. What I found most fascinating was that both pieces convey a sense of hope for America’s future. This poem and speech, written 78 years apart, describe such similar aspects of American culture, which I find true even to this day, nearly 90 years since Hughes’ poem was published. This caused me to wonder, is there any hope in America at all? Can these conditions ever change? What can we learn from these pieces today?
In “Let America Be America Again,” Langston Hughes opens the poem by describing his hope for the American Dream to come to fruition as it was once meant to be. He writes “Let America be the dream the dreamers dream / Let it be that great strong land of love” (lines 6-7). He quickly introduces the idea that he, as a black American, has never been a part of this dream of liberty for all, by following the first stanza with the stand-alone statement, “(America was never America to me)” (line 5). Douglass speaks about this in his 4th of July address, describing that the concepts the holiday celebrates have no application to him or any other Black American. Douglass writes, “This Fourth [of] July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn” (386). Douglass’ speech seems to be intended for a white audience and specifically describes that white citizens get to benefit from American society, while black citizens suffer. Hughes doesn’t really highlight those who benefit from society, but rather focuses on the vast oppression that he sees, that so many different Americans experience. Hughes writes, “O, let America be America again – / The land that never has been yet — / And yet must be – the land where every man is free. The land that’s mine – the poor man’s, Indian’s, Negro’s, ME– / Who made America” (lines 61-66).
Both authors critique the country’s sense of pride in their national values of liberty and justice for all. Hughes writes, “O, let my land be a land where Liberty / is crowned with no false patriotic wreath / But opportunity is real, and life is free” (lines 11-13), describing his desire to see America be truly where liberty is not a lie. Along this same theme, Douglass writes, “In the name of liberty which is fettered, in the name of the constitution and the Bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon, dare to call in question and to denounce, with all the emphasis I can command, everything that serves to perpetuate slavery—the great sin and shame of America!” (386).
Despite their clear expression that America is not what it should be, and many are suffering at the hands of oppression, they both include in their writing, their hopes for the future of America and faith that the American Dream can be achieved. At the end of Frederick Douglass’ speech, he writes, “I, therefore, leave off where I began, with hope. While drawing encouragement from the Declaration of Independence, the great principles it contains, and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is also cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age” (390). Douglass clearly believes in the idea of the American Dream and that it can be achieved. Hughes mirrors this sentiment. Towards the end of his poem he writes, “I say it plain, America was never America to me / And yet I swear this oath– / America will be!” (lines 76-79).
This brings us back to the question I posed at the beginning – 166 years after Douglass’ speech, and 88 years after Hughes’ poem, should we, like them, continue to have faith in the American Dream, the achievement of liberty and justice for all? We live in a society that continues to shift and change, but at the root of it, has America really changed?
In Douglass’ time, oppression for black Americans existed in the form of slavery, and in Hughes’ time, it existed in the form of Jim Crowe laws/ segregation. Now, we still see the oppression of black Americans through systemic racism that keeps black and brown folks in poverty, through police brutality and unequal treatment of black and brown bodies in the criminal justice system, stereotypes in media, the continued existence of racially motivated crime, and so much more. Sure, our country has evolved and oppression is perhaps less blatant, but I would argue it’s just better hidden.
I can’t help but wonder if Langston Hughes or Frederick Douglass lived today, would they still believe in the vision of America? Would they be pleased or disappointed with how the country has evolved? I would like to end my post with the following quote from Douglass’ speech, which I still believe rings so true today: “Whether we turn to the declarations of the past, or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting” (386).
Discussion questions:
Do you think if Douglass / Hughes were alive today, they would still have faith in the future of America/ the American Dream?
Do you believe there is hope in the American Dream or “liberty and justice for all”? Do you think it ever has been/ ever will be achieved?
Works Cited
Douglass, Frederick, “What to The Slave Is the Fourth of July?” The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. Edited by Louis Gates Jr. and Valerie Smith, 3rd ed., Norton, 2014, pgs. 379-391.
Hughes, Langston. “Let America Be America Again.” Poets.Org, Academy of American Poets, 3 Feb. 2021, poets.org/poem/let-america-be-america-again.
Hi Raquel,
I enjoyed reading your post and I agree with your interesting findings between the two poems By Langston Hughes and Fredrick Douglass. They both mentioned the racism that took place during their lifetime. I found that interesting because you raised a good point on racism over the course of time. How it hasn’t gotten better but hidden better/systematic racism. Its seems like over the passage of time I definitely wouldn’t go as far as to say racism has gone away but it has been hidden and toned down a lot compared to the past and I feel that scenario is the same when Frederick Douglass wrote his poem during slaves times where racisms was extremely open and blatant; And when Langston Hughes wrote his speech there were Jim Crow Laws were in effect so slavery was abolished by this point but still racism was still around just not as blatant as having slaves. That brings me to today and your question “if we wonder how they would feel if they were still alive in America today. I don’t think they would be happy but I don’t think they would be terribly upset either because compared to their time to now there has been progress but they would look at the situation like many of us and know that there is a lot more that can be done in America to abolish this problem.
“I, therefore, leave off where I began, with hope. While drawing encouragement from the Declaration of Independence, the great principles it contains, and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is also cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age” I meant to include this quote to further answer your question of how they would feel and I think this answers your question a little bit It seems like he would still hold faith is the founders and the true belief of what America is truly supposed to stand for.
Hi Raquel! This was a really good blog post! I really liked how you gave us a timeline to the literature between the two pieces, both Hughes and Douglass, and how each of the events described in the two pieces relate to not only each other, but also events that are currently happening today. To answer one of your discussion questions, I do not think that if both Hughes and Douglass were still alive they would both still believe in the future of America. In Langston Hughes poem, he says “America never was America to me”, which I think shows that even in the 1900s he did not believe that America was going to change. I think that after he watched what has happened over the years, he would give up on believing that people can change because of his other line in the poem, “Except the dream that’s almost dead today”. Likewise, in Douglass’ speech, he says “Were the nation older, the patriot’s heart might be sadder, and the reformers brow heavier”, which I think shows how if in time nothing changes, people will stop believing that something good can happen. If history keeps repeating itself, nothing will ever change because people, although heartbroken, will let the cycle keep repeating.
Do you think if Douglass / Hughes were alive today, they would still have faith in the future of America/ the American Dream?
If Douglass and Hughes were alive today, Hughes would have a bit more of faith in the future of America compared to Douglass. Times back then were much different than they are today in 2024. They both stated in their poems that they do have faith in America being what it should be or more what they want it to be which you have stated. Hughes does state in his poem that America was never America to him. He stated, “Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed- Let it be the great strand of love, where never kings connive nor tyrants’ scheme that any man can be crushed by one above.” (lines 1-4). On line 5, he states “It was never America to me.” Hughes never got the chance to have America be what he wanted it to be. Hughes would have faith in the future of America today. On the other side of things, Douglass states “Do you mean citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak to-day” (386). Douglass would have less faith due to him thinking people would mock him, makes him seem unfaithful, where Hughes states a little more love for America in his poem compared to Douglass.
Hi Raquel, I really enjoyed reading your blog I think you brought up a good point of how even 78 years apart there is still discrimination and inequality in our country. and to add even 90 Yeats later to today there is still that racism embedded in our systems. Your question of ” what can we learn from these pieces today?” I think we could learn that if we’re persistent and strong we could always fight for our rights. It’s been a long fight but there isn’t anything to stop the people from getting what they deserve, true freedom. To answer one of your discussion questions, if Douglass or Hughes were alive today I think they would still be fighting that battle for inequality. They still do not see that here in our country and it’s not just for black/African Americans, it’s for other minority groups as well. In the the poem Hughs says “I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart, I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars.I am the red man driven from the land,I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek—And finding only the same old stupid plan.” Hughes is saying that the inequality in this country has gotten to the point where they don’t approve of anyone who isn’t white and rich. It’s still like that to this day where you if you didn’t grow up white or wealthy you get the back end of what America really is. The true America is disgusting and they advertise it to be this amazing dream with promises they cannot keep.
Raquel, I applaud you for making the comparison of Fredrick Dougkes and Langston Hughes stories,Reading the poem I never thought to compare. The question you stated “ Do you believe there is hope in the American Dream or “liberty and justice for all”? Do you think it ever has been/ ever will be achieved?” To be honest I don’t see it being “liberty and justice for all”. I say this because there will always be someone who will be too ignorant or too prideful to not want to hear or listen to colored people or immigrant people’s testimonies. We are in 2024 and systems are still corrupted. There will always be someone who is greedy and selfish, and uneducated. I want there to be peace and liberty and justice for everyone, but the only way that can happen is to continue to educate ourselves and our kids and teach them to do the same for theirs.
Hi Raquel, I really enjoyed reading your blog post on “The American Dream Through the Eyes of Langston Hughes”. I liked the quotes you used as I thought they had a great reflection of what Langston is trying to get across as his perspective. To answer your questions I do think that Langston / Douglas would have hope for the future as todays world is much more mainstream and how influential things like media can be nowadays. For your second question I do think there is hope as although racism and discrimination will never completely be gone there is a lot of progress that has been made for example within the last 50-60 years. Overall great work on your blog post!
Hi Raquel, your blog was very enjoyable to read. I really liked the comparison of the two pieces. The quote that you referenced, “This fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn” really speaks volumes. You did a great job emphasizing the emotions these writers felt and putting it in your own words. You used many powerful quotes in this blog, another one I liked was, “I say it plain, America was never American to me / And yet I swear this oath-/ America will be!”. These were great choices and really made me feel a small bit of their emotions while reading it. Id like to answer the second question you asked. I believe very much so that there is hope in the American Dream and liberty and justice for all. The fact that we have this class and discuss these things open mindedly and progressively shows just a fraction of how far we have come. I do believe there is a lot of work to be done, but I have faith in what good people are working towards now and we move closer and closer every day.
Hello Raquel, the blog that you have posted was great. The comparison that you have done with Frederick Douglass was amazing and made the post even better. The interpretation that I made from your blog about Hughes and my knowledge about Frederick is that they’re very similar and if both were alive at the current moment then honestly, it would be a conversation that most people would want to hear. The impacts that both individuals have already made caused an impact, but imagine if social media existed like how it is nowadays. The promotion of what they preach would drive up even more which can lead to a brighter future. To answer your second question, it is very weird. The reason I say this is because we do have rights compared to other nations. John Locke as well as other Enlightenment fathers had taught us about the rights that humans have and Thomas Jefferson took that into account which made our country the way it is, however, there is still a lot of work to be done. Not everything is perfect in this country. Inequality is still an enduring issue that exists and it is very bad how over the years this issue still impacts us as a society. I have faith and hope that there will be a bigger change. We need this. Great work on your blog post!!
Hi Raquel. I think you did a great job with your blog post. You made very interesting points and highlighted crucial details between the texts. Both pieces of literature recognize the inequalities in America as well as the hope for a better future. Both Langston Hughes and Frederick Douglass express their faith that America will change and they believe this change is crucial. I found your discussion question to be very interesting. In todays world I think generally both people would be shocked to see what America has turned into. The views they had were shaped on the America in which they had lived in but obviously today we experience a different version of that America. Throughout their writings they seem to be extremely committed and dedicated to helping provide justice and equality to all so it is believable that in todays world they would continue to do so. I think although many years have gone by they would still strive for change to be made because of how passionate they are. I feel they would be able to recognize and award some advancements that have occurred overtime but still criticize the America we live in today.
Hey Raquel! I really loved your perspective and comparison between Langston Hughes’ “Let America Be America Again,” and Frederick Douglass’ Speech, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”. Seeing that both literature was written 83 years apart and that both writers had the same outlook on America and its inequalities, expressed the idea that within those 83 years, inequality was still a great conflict. What I realised was different though was the term that both Langston and Frederick use to refer to America. Frederick referred to America (or their celebration of America’s freedom) as ‘Your’, (eq – “What have I, or those I represent, to do with YOUR national independence?…”), while Langston referred to America as ‘My’ (eq – “O, let MY land be a land where Liberty…”). However, both writers still had one goal and one hope, that inequality will die in America and that America will actually become the “Land of the Free”.
Hey Raquel!
I really liked how you used both Douglass’s and Hughes way of wording as a way to compare and contrast how they both get their points across. I think it’s interesting that they both used praising America as a way of grabbing attention of the reader to point out the injustices they faced, even though it is set in a different time for each writing, they both have similar struggles. I think that if Douglass and Hughes were alive today, they may have more faith in the future of America and the American dream, but there it may seem like a still long road ahead. Modern America still faces problems with addressing other races and treating everyone equally. I think they would have faith, but would also be aware that we are not fully there yet and that there is still action needed to achieve the American dream for all. Personally, I believe that it is possible for all to be equally treated but it will unfortunately take a while, as you noted that racism is more hidden and is still engrained in everyday life. I do not think it is impossible, because even small things like representation in media is a step towards a more equal America. I know this is possible and will eventually be achieved, but it will take time and effort. Hughes says “I guess being colored doesn’t make me not like the same things other folks like who are other races.” In Theme for English B, and this is obvious yes, that your race does not make you different from other people when it comes to being a genuine person, but this is still yet to be realized in America still.
Hey Raquel,
First, this was a good post; you connected the two readings very well. I also like the first question you asked at the end: if they were alive today, would they have faith in the American Dream? From your discussion, both Fredrick Douglass and Langston Hughes understood that the United States is a great nation but has its faults. Both men saw what it took for the country to rise to prominence and how we could still fix it. Frederick Douglass says, “I, therefore, leave off where I began, with hope. While drawing encouragement from the Declaration of Independence, the great principles it contains, and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is also cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age” (390). And Langston Hughes says, “I say it plain, America was never America to me / And yet I swear this oath– / America will be!” (lines 76-79).
Both mention the nation’s issues but show that there could be change. To answer the question, as far as social movements have evolved, I believe they would both be proud of how far we have come as a nation. Of course, some improvements could still be made, but racial equality has come a long way since the times of both of them; they would also be extremely proud of the movements being demonstrated nationwide.
Good Morning Raquel, the sun is shining greatly and the wind, oh don’t get me started. So as for your post, it was absolutely lovely. The way that you broke up your paragraphs and sited so much information, it was good that you could look back at the pages and really understand where everyone was coming from. As for your questions, I think that if Douglas and or Huges were alive today, they would be doing the same thing. Granted it would probably be at a smaller scale. But they would still have that dog in em. The ability and confidence to speak up for what’s right. And for equality and justice for all, you can’t control everybody. And there will always be a racial bias no matter what. Because that’s the way people are. There will always be a biased, it’s just a question of will this bias affect us in a way that will have massive negative impacts on our society.
This question you chose Raquel about if Douglass / Hughes were alive today, they would still have faith in the future of America/ the American Dream? is a very thought-provoking one. As on the one hand after so long there have been plenty of changes to know where it is so much different from both Douglass’s and Hughes’s times. But there is still a long way to go. I think both Douglass and Hughes would not have faith in the future of America/the American dream. I say this because as we stand today as a country there is so much divide between citizens of this great nation and it’s almost like a lot of people can’t see eye to eye. I think if Douglass and Hughes saw this divide between our country they would agree that there is a long road ahead for this country.
Hi Raquel! This blog post was really interesting and gave me a lot to think about. Both highlight the problems facing the country but also offer hope for improvement. In response to the question, I think they would both be pleased with the progress our country has made in terms of social movements. While there is always room for improvement, racial equality has advanced much since their respective eras, and they would both be very happy of the current national movements. To answer the first question you asked, do you think if Douglass / Hughes were alive today, they would still have faith in the future of America/ the American Dream, it’s rather hard to say. In today’s society we still struggle to find the so-called American dream. Douglass stated, “I, therefore, leave off where I began, with hope. While drawing encouragement from the Declaration of Independence, the great principles it contains, and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is also cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age” (390). With this quote in mind, I would say I’m leaning more on the side of yes, I think they would still have faith in our American Dreams, that’s just it though. There are so many variations of the American Dream that we can’t say for sure if it was found or not. But this post was very thought provoking, good job!
Hi Raquel, great post! I love the way that you connected the Langston Hughes Poem to the earlier reading from Fredrick Douglass. Your attention to detail to dig into the history and context of both of these readings can allow us to further understand the readings and find their similarities and differences. The quote “O, let my land be a land where Liberty / is crowned with no false patriotic wreath / But opportunity is real, and life is free” (lines 11-13) that you used in paragraph three is also a quote that I had written and annoted in my notes. I think the part about no false patriotic wreath can relate back heavily to “What to the Slave is The Fourth of July”, because Fredrick Douglass talks about how America is so prideful and patriotic because we are a ‘free’ country, but that is not true for black Americans. To talk about your question of is there hope in the American Dream or “Liberty and justice for all”, I do believe there is still hope. Since these poems have been written, as a country, we have come much further. Things are far from perfect, and oppression and biases still live on; but I hope that if we still have hope like Hughes and Douglass, that there we can reach “Liberty and justice for all”.