Daniel Inouye: “on February, 14, 2005, one of our greatest Americans, Frederick Douglass, was honored at a celebration at the historic…”

“on February, 14, 2005, one of our greatest Americans, Frederick Douglass, was honored at a celebration at the historic Ford's Theatre that was sponsored by the Caring Institute and the National Park Service. These two organizations play major roles in ensuring that the life and legacy of Mr. Douglass are not forgotten-- the Institute through its establishment of The Frederick Douglass Museum and the Hall of Fame for Caring Americans on Capitol Hill, and the National Park Service through its management of the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site at Cedar Hill in Anacostia. As you know, Cedar Hill was his home in Washington, DC. Frederick Douglass was one of the most important intellectual voices in American life in the 19th century. He was a forceful and persuasive writer and orator against slavery and for equal rights for African- Americans. His experiences as a slave were central to exposing the injustices of slavery. His first autobiographical work, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, was published in 1845 when he was a runaway slave. His second autobiography, My Bondage and My Freedom, was published in 1855, 9 years after friends and supporters in Great Britain bought his freedom. He frequently lectured about his experiences as a slave, and on what freedom meant to him. During the Civil War, Douglass served as a recruiter of African- American soldiers for the North, and several times discussed with President Lincoln the problems of slavery.”