Frederick Douglass: The Story Behind His Lasting Legacy


 

From the moment I read up on Frederick Douglass, he had my utmost respect because of the things he was able to achieve over time. He was born a slave around 1818 on the eastern shore of Maryland and of course, just like so many other enslaved people, he was unsure of his exact date of birth. In his own words, documented in his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, he says,

鈥淚 have no accurate knowledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it. By far the larger part of the slaves know as little of their ages as horses know of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters within my knowledge to keep their slaves thus ignorant. I do not remember to have ever met a slave who could tell of his birthday.鈥�

It was therefore after he was able to escape enslavement that he chose his own birth date as February 14th. I cannot be able to imagine what slavery and discrimination must have done to him, but he was still able to come out victorious when he left quite a legacy behind. A legacy that is always remembered and talked about every month during Black History Month. Let’s look at the story behind Fredrick’s legacy and how exactly he came to be the legend we honour and respect today.

1. Fredrick Douglass was separated from his mother as an infant

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It has been documented that Douglass was born as Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, which is the name he was given by his mother. He was however separated from her when he was an infant and lived with his maternal grandmother, Betty Bailey until when he was hired out to work in the home of Hugh Auld in Baltimore. While here, Douglass taught himself how to read and write based on the lessons he was observing from some of the poor, white children in the area.

2. Fredrick Douglass started teaching other enslaved people to read and write

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After he started learning how to read and write, he soon started teaching other enslaved people how to read. He did this every Sunday and it soon became a thing. At one point it is said that Fredrick recounted having taught up to 40 enslaved people from neighbouring plantations how to read. Sadly, when his owner, Auld learned what he was doing, he was sold off to another slave owner and farmer, Edward Covey, who had a reputation for giving very brutal treatment to enslaved people. At the time Douglass was only 16 years old and he later wrote that during that time he was 鈥渂roken in body, soul, and spirit.鈥�

3. Douglass attempted to escape from slavery twice before succeeding

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Feeling like you are broken both in spirit and soul is not a blissful feeling. I can only imagine what was going through the mind of Douglass when he resorted to the most dangerous methods of not being a slave anymore. Running away. He attempted to escape twice before finally succeeding in 1838. After his second attempt, he was arrested and sent to Baltimore to work in the city’s shipyards for two years. He was very determined to reach New York and eventually attain freedom. With regard to this he wrote, 鈥淚 felt assured that if I failed in this attempt, my case would be a hopeless one鈥攊t would seal my fate as a slave forever.鈥� With the knowledge he gained from working in the shipyards, he was able to disguise himself as a free Black sailor, armed with a uniform and a sailor’s protection pass that could have substituted  for ‘free papers.’ He jumped aboard a moving train heading north from Baltimore and Ohio railroad station. Despite the many challenges and obstacles he faced, he arrived safely in New York almost 24 hours after leaving Baltimore.

4. Douglass became very active in the abolition of slavery

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After arriving in New York, he was sheltered by an Abolitionist and anti-slavery activist, David Ruggles until Anna Murray (who later became his wife), met him in Baltimore. Murray was a free black housekeeper whom Douglass met while enslaved by Aulds.  After the couple got married, they moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts where they met Nathan and Mary Johnson, a free married couple who inspired Fredrick and Anna to adopt the new surname, Douglass, after a character from the Sir Walter Scott poem, ‘The Lady of the Lake.’  Fredrick became very active in the abolitionist movement during their time in Bedford where he would attend anti-slavery meetings and this connected him to many other activists including William Lloyd Garrison. When he heard about Fredrick’s story, he encouraged him to share it with other community members. He did and by 1843, he became one of the many abolitionists who were involved in the American Anti-Slavery Society鈥檚 鈥淗undred Conventions鈥� project, a six-month tour through the United States.

5. Douglass traveled to Ireland and Great Britain to talk about American Slavery

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When he first shared his story, it was taken with a lot of conviction and this encouraged him to continue traveling and sharing his experiences with others. In 1845, he traveled to Ireland and Great Britain to talk about American slavery and even published the first and most famous of the three autobiographies he wrote that year, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.

6. His first autobiography became very famous

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Just within four months of its release, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave sold over 5,000 copies and six new editions had been published between 1845 and 1849. The reality of what a nightmare slavery was put people be in touch with how inhumane it was hence its popularity. Fredrick went on to write two more autobiographies, My Bondage and My Freedom in1881 and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass in1892. They did equally well and they showcased Fredrick’s amazing writing skills that painted a clear picture of what slavery really did.

7. He began publishing an abolitionist newspaper

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After returning to the United States from England in 1847, Frederick Douglass began publishing an abolitionist newspaper that was known as ‘The North Star. This newspaper sold for a subscription fee of $2 and it was reported that it acquired more than 4,000 readers in the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean, before even merging with the Liberty Party Paper in 1851.

8. Douglass played also a huge role in the Women’s Suffrage Movement

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Apart from Fredrick’s work as an anti-slavery advocate, he was also very serious and a staunch supporter of the women’s movement. For instance, at the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848, he was one of the very few men who attended and actually the only African American who was present. In fact, it is said that Douglass was the one who persuaded the convention to support Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s resolution asking for women’s suffrage. It is thanks to this that women now can vote and even participate in political movements.

9. He played a huge role in the emancipation of enslaved individuals

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During the American Civil War, Fredrick found his role in agitation and activism where he continued to pressure politicians for the full emancipation of enslaved individuals. His constant agitation of Abraham Lincoln is actually what helped usher in the terms of emancipation to come.  In turn, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863 and this is the document that ensured freedom to those who were enslaved and living in the South.  The emancipation proclamation had no legal standing per se since the states in secession did not recognize the authority of the United States. However, in the long run, this document did exactly what Douglass was all along encouraging Lincoln to do. Send a message that the civil war will not be won until everyone is free. He believed that African Americans, both legally freed and those formerly enslaved had a moral obligation to join the Union Army and fight for the cause against slavery.

10. Douglass served in many positions within the U.S. Government

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Part of what makes Frederick Douglass even greater with such an impressive legacy is that he served in many positions within the U.S. Government, including a position as the president of the Freedman’s Savings Bank. In 1889, President Harrison appointed him  to the posts of 鈥淢inister-Resident and Consul-General to the Republic of Haiti鈥� and 鈥淐harg茅 d’Affaires for the Dominican Republic.鈥� This made him to be the first black man to hold ‘high office,’ in the United States.

Douglass is a very big deal in the history of African Americans because of his determination and resilience in fighting for the rights of black people. He will forever be remembered for being outspoken and vocal and never backing down.

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