Bill Honors Douglass

EASTON — A bill that passed in the U.S. House of Representatives would set up a commission to develop ways to honor Talbot County's native son, Frederick Douglass, in the year of his 200th birthday.

According to the bill, H.R. 2989, the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commission would "plan, develop, and carry out programs and activities that are fitting and proper to honor Frederick Douglass on the occasion of the bicentennial anniversary of Douglass' birth." The commission will then make recommendations to Congress.

The bill was introduced in June by U.S Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md.-1st, and U.S. Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Washington, D.C., Democrat.

Harris said during a House session on Oct. 11 that the purpose of the bill "is more than just honoring the birth of one great civil rights leader."

"Its purpose is to recognize his lasting impact on American government, culture and values," Harris said.

"Frederick Douglass' work stretched far beyond the fight for legal freedom into the equally important fight for social and cultural equality," Harris said. "Frederick Douglass is a model for the values that make our nation great — quality, liberty and a commitment to working hard and helping others."

Douglass was born into slavery on the Eastern Shore in 1818 and had no formal education, but taught himself to read and write. After his escape from slavery, he became a powerful abolitionist, author, statesman and orator.

He was an advisor to President Abraham Lincoln, a U.S. marshal, an ambassador and was considered as a presidential nominee during the Republican National Convention in 1888.

In September, Harris visited Wye House, the historic planation house in Talbot County where Douglass spent part of his childhood. He was led through the tour by Dr. Mark Leone, an archeologist and professor of anthropology at the University of Maryland, who said, "Wye House is important to Frederick Douglass, to Talbot County, to Maryland, and to all of its descendants."

"Our commitment has been to discovering African-American heritage through archaeology. (Our) discoveries show us the creative culture that Frederick Douglass knew and fought to free," Leone said. "The archaeology shows us the community that produced him and his values. Thus, preserving it during his bicentenary is guaranteeing American freedom."

The House version of the bill now heads to the Senate, where a copy of the legislation is being sponsored by U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.

"As we approach the bicentennial of Douglass' birth, all Americans should learn more about his work as an abolitionist and his lasting influence on our nation's culture, as I did at Wye House," Harris said. "The commission established by this legislation will determine the best ways to honor this great American hero, and his fight for freedom and equality."