Black History Month: Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass’s impact on Black History and history, in general, is just one of the many reasons he is considered one of the major intellectuals and a Civil Rights leader of his time. 

According to Encyclopedia Britannica, Douglass was born in February of 1818 in Cordova, Maryland. Separated as an infant from his slave mother. Frederick lived with his grandmother on a Maryland plantation until he was eight years old when his owner sent him to Baltimore to live as a house servant with the family of Hugh Auld, whose wife defied state law by teaching the boy to read. 

Douglass defied norms and learned how to read and write. This defiance led to Douglass being educated and becoming one of the most influential African Americans of all time by being the first black citizen to hold a high rank in the U.S. Government serving as an adviser to President Lincoln.

Not only was he educated but he also impacted many futures of many African Americans by showing that people of color can be leaders and change the world.

However, Douglass’ impact wasn’t only important for slaves and people of color. He was also a major fighter in women’s rights after being one of the only African American to attend the Seneca Falls Woman’s Rights Convention in Upstate New York.

Douglass also has inspired many future Civil Rights activists including Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, and W.E.B Du Bois.

Before his death, Douglass wrote many books on the trials and tribulations that he faced in his life during slavery and post-slavery with his most popular being Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.

I chose to write about Douglass because he was an original and a big role model in my life due to his intellect at the time and his willingness to go against what he was told to do. He was a person of culture and always did what was right for his people, and I admire that.

Without the impact of Douglass, life as we know it would be vastly different based on the fact that he was a major forerunner for civil rights.