Douglass is a master of verbal irony (a.k.a. saying one thing and meaning another, a.k.a. sarcasm), and this speech is no exception. In fact, "The Church and Prejudice" is a topic just crying out for classic Douglass sarcasm. Throughout the speech, he manages to talk about how white people are such great Christians—when he clearly means the opposite.

In the first example, he references "the good minister" (3) who celebrated a segregated communion. In the second example, he says of the white woman who refused to share communion with a black woman, "Such was the religion she had experienced!" (13).

Later, when Douglass talks about the issues involved with prejudice in general, he takes on those people who say they like black people fine "in their proper place" (24), saying, "That's the way we are liked!" (28)

Douglass saves his most intense irony for the slaveholder who beats his slaves while quoting scripture. He concludes his speech with the line, "Such was the amount of this good Methodist's piety." (43) Well put, Fred.