Frederick Douglass Statue Unveiled in US Capitol

Frederick Douglass will be officially remembered on Capitol Hill, the Associated Press reports. Suggested Reading The Root 100 – 2020 Black History Month – 2022 Hip-Hop 50 Year – 2023 Video will return here when scrolled back into view Stefon Diggs and Cardi B Viral Boat Video Prompts Response from Patriots Coach To view this…

Frederick Douglass will be officially remembered on Capitol Hill, the Associated Press reports.

Video will return here when scrolled back into view
Stefon Diggs and Cardi B Viral Boat Video Prompts Response from Patriots Coach
Stefon Diggs and Cardi B Viral Boat Video Prompts Response from Patriots Coach

On Wednesday, House Speaker John Boehner led the unveiling ceremony of a 7-foot bronze statue of the former slave in the U.S. Capitol's Emancipation Hall. Steve Weitzman, a Maryland artist, created the statue, which portrays Douglass in his 50s.

The statue joins sculpted tributes to fellow black Americans Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. and Sojourner Truth on permanent display in the Capitol's Emancipation Hall.

Douglass was born a slave in 1818 in Talbot County, Md. He advised President Abraham Lincoln and was a voice for women's rights as well as those of black Americans.

Boehner is calling the statue "a fitting tribute to one of the greatest Americans and voices for freedom who ever lived."

Read more at the Huffington Post.

Straight From The Root

Sign up for our free daily newsletter.