美国人物生平 Frederick Douglass

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Frederick Douglass

 

  Frederick Douglass once told a group of African American students from a school in Talbot County, Maryland, “What was possible for me is possible for you. Do not think because you are colored you cannot accomplish anything. Strive earnestly to add to your knowledge. So long as you remain in ignorance, so long will you fail to command the respect of your fellow men.” Born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey in February 1817 to a slave mother and a white father he never knew, Frederick Douglass grew up to become a leader in the abolitionist movement and the first black citizen to hold high rank( as U.S. minister and consul general to Haiti) in the U.S. government. He died on February 20, 1895.

1)      Douglass’s Escape from Slavery

   Can you believe that a train conductor held the fate of Frederick Douglass’s entire life in his hands? Douglass described his daring escape on a train ride from Baltimore to Philadelphia in his autobiography, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass(1881). For the journey, Douglass disguised himself as a sailor wearing a red shirt, a tarpaulin hat, and a black scarf tied loosely around his neck. He also had to be able to talk like a sailor. “My knowledge of ships and sailor’s talk came much to my assistance, for I knew a ship from stem to stern, and from keelson to cross-trees, and could talk sailor like an “old salt”.

   Along with the other black passengers, Douglass had to show his “free papers”- a document proving he was free and could travel- along with his ticket. Because Douglass was a runaway slave, he didn’t have free papers. Instead, he had borrowed what was called a Seaman’s Protection Certificate, which proved that a sailor was a citizen of the U.S.

  Douglass described his nervousness when the conductor came by ot collect tickets and look over papers:”My whole future depended upon the decision of this conductor.”

  This is how the conversation went when the conductor reached Douglass in the crowded train car.

  “I suppose you have your free papers?”

  “No sir; I never carry my free papers to sea with me.”

  “But you have something to show that your are a freeman, haven’t you?”

  “Yes, sir, I have a paper with the American eagle on it, and that will carry me around the world.”

  A quick glance at the paper satisfied the conductor and he took Douglass’s fare and went on to the other passengers. This moment was one of the most anxious Douglass had ever experienced.

  If the conductor had looked closely, he would have noticed that Douglass did not match the description of the person on the form and he would have been required to send him back to slavery in Baltimore. Not only would this have been terrible for Douglass but also the friend, from whom he borrowed the Seaman’s Certificate, would have been in serious trouble. Later, when Douglass wrote his first autobiography in 1845, he didn’t include the way in which he escaped because some of the people who had helped him could have gotten into trouble. By the time Douglass wrote his revised autobiography in 1881, he included the real description of his daring escape.

2，Frederick Douglass-Abolitionist Leader

After Douglass escaped, he wanted to promote freedom for all slaves. He published a newspaper in Rochester, New York, called The North Star. It got its name because slaves escaping at night followed the North Star in the sky to freedom. Douglass’s goals were to “abolish slavery in all its form and aspects, promote the moral and intellectual improvement of the COLORED PEOPLE, and hasten the day of FREEDOM to the Three Millions of our enslaved fellow countrymen.” How else did Douglass promote freedom?

In addition to publishing The North Star, Douglass lectured on the subject of freedom. Even though he had made a name for himself and was a successful leader in the abolitionist movement, he was still subject to laws keeping blacks separate from whites. On one occasion, he took a train to speak in a southern city. During the journey, he was forced to sit in the section reserved for “colored” people at the end if the freight car. When his hosts met him at the other end, they were very apologetic that he had been humiliated and made to sit in the back of the car. His response was, “Gentlemen, by ignoble actions I may degrade myself, but nothing and no man can degrade Frederick Douglass.”

Frederick Douglass is known for his ability to speak and inspire a crowd, but he wasn’t always confident talking in front of an audience. His very first speech was in 1841 at the church of the Rev. Thomas James, who asked Frederick Douglass to speak about his experiences as a slave. At first, Douglass was nervous and shy, but as he went on, he became more sure of himself and his speaking skills. After that experience, he went in front of crowds on numerous occasions to speak out against slavery.

Douglass kept company with other abolitionists, including Wendell Philips, William Lloyd Garrison, and Owen Lovejoy. He also spoke in favor of women’s rights and worked alongside Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, and many others.

3, Frederick Douglass’s Role in the Civil War

African Americans were ready and writing to fight in Civil War, but President Lincoln and Union leaders were not sure about how they felt about enlisting black troops. By 1860, Frederick Douglass was well known for his efforts to end slavery and his skill at public speaking. During the Civil War, Douglass was a consultant to President and helped convince him that the abolition of the slavery should be a goal of the war.

On January 1, 1863, Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation clearly stated that Confederate slaves were now free and they could serve in the union army. By the end of the war, about 186000 African American men had enlisted. Frederick Douglass also worked as a recruiter in several regions of the country signing up African Americans to serve in union army. Whom do you think he signed up to serve?

Frederick Douglass recruited his sons, Charles and Lewis, who both joined the famous 54^th Massachusetts Regiment. This army unit was made up of black volunteers who fought a bitter battle at Fort Wagner, South Carolina, in July 1863. Frederick Douglass’s third youngest son, Charles, wrote to his father while he was in army. In the letter Charles said he heard that “the colored people were rushing into Philadelphia and that yourself and….others were doing all you could for them.”

cardinal1226

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brighty

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