Essay On Frederick Douglass

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Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe. This is a quote by Frederick Douglas, the inspirational man I am doing my oral on. Good afternoon, Mr Townsend and class, today I will be doing my oral on Frederick Douglass who fought for freedom and equality.
Fredrick Douglas was an African-American man that was born into slavery in Talbot County, Maryland. His mother, Harrier Douglas, was a slave who worked for a white man that was presumed to be Frederick Douglass’s father. From the earliest he could remember he had to work in the fields as a slave, with no education as it was thought that slaves would want freedom more if they were educated. Frederick was sold during infancy to another slave owner meaning that he only saw his mother 4 or 5 times during his life as she passed away when Frederick was 7. When he turned 8 he was sent to a new plantation in Baltimore where he lived with the Hugh Auld family. Frederick was taught to read by the wife of his Master - Sophia Auld. Frederick remembers Sophia as the first person to ever treat him like a real human being, and it was this crucial feeling of equality that sparked the idea of freedom for Frederick. Frederick wrote in his autobiography “Going to live at Baltimore laid the foundation, and opened the gateway, to all my subsequent prosperity”. When his slave master found out that he was being educated he put a stop to it but Frederick continued to read in secrecy. Frederick wrote about his times being a slave, writing even in his darkest hours of slavery, he always held onto an inner conviction ...

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...after the civil war, as the 14th and 15th Amendment to the US constitution were passed providing in law, equal citizenships and equal rights for all men, regardless of colour.
Even after the civil war with the 14th and 15th amendment passed, it was still hard for African Americans as there were a large number of white supremacists. Frederick continued to campaign and try and change the public’s opinion.
Douglass was the first African-American to receive a vote for President of the US. On February 20, 1895, Douglass died of a heart attack or stroke in Washington D.C. Thousands attended his funeral.
Frederick Douglass’s legacy lived on as he is still remembered for his deeply held belief in the equality of all people and his courageous opposition to slavery. He played a crucial rule in changing the public’s opinion and was the first prominent African-American leader.

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