Frederick Douglass Congressional Gold Medal Act

(1) Frederick Douglass overcame the harrowing circumstances of slavery to become one of America’s most prominent and influential figures as an abolitionist, journalist, and activist. He used his voice and influence to advocate for the end of slavery, the advancement of civil rights, and the right of black men to vote.

(2) Frederick Douglass was born into slavery in February 1818 in the northeast corner of Talbot County near the town of Queen Anne. At age 6, Frederick Douglass began laboring at the wheat plantation of Colonel Edward Lloyd. He was soon transferred to Baltimore, where he worked for 7 years in the residence of Hugh and Sophia Auld.

(3) Despite laws that prohibited literacy of enslaved individuals, Frederick Douglass secretly taught himself to read and write by examining discarded newspapers and studying books on rhetoric, mastering the style of the time period. On literacy, Douglass was clear, stating: Once you learn to read, you will be forever free., and that Knowledge makes a man unfit to be a slave..

(4) Douglass moved to a plantation near St. Michael, Maryland, where he started a secret school for slaves that was later broken up by an angry mob of white townspeople. As punishment, Douglass was loaned out to a local farmer with a reputation as a slave breaker. Undaunted, Douglass started another school for slaves and began plotting to escape and liberate himself from slavery.

(5) Sent back to the Auld residence in Baltimore, Douglass unsuccessfully attempted to buy his freedom, and instead escaped in 1838 at the age of 20. Speaking of his freedom, Douglass said, I prayed for freedom for twenty years, but received no answer until I prayed with my legs.. He traveled to New York where he worked on whaling ships while avoiding slave catchers. He adopted the surname Douglass on the suggestion of his friend, Nathan Johnson, who was inspired by a character in Sir Walter Scott’s poem The Lady of the Lake.

(6) Speaking at the August 1841 convention of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society on Nantucket Island, Douglass garnered the attention of leading abolitionists, catapulting him into a speaking tour of northern states, where he and his fellow speakers often endured verbal and physical abuse.

(7) Douglass supported women’s rights. He attended the renowned Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, supporting the inclusion of a landmark resolution that demanded the right for all women to vote.

(8) His groundbreaking autobiographies, including Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (1845), My Bondage and My Freedom (1855), and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass (1881), provided detailed accounts of the life of an enslaved individual, the struggles to escape, and the fight for freedom. His abolitionist newspaper, the North Star, promoted freedom for slaves domestically and abroad. These writings not only exposed the brutalities of slavery, but also dispelled myths about African American inferiority.

(9) Douglass spoke forcefully about human oppression. On August 3rd, 1857, he delivered an address in Canandaigua, New York, emphasizing the work required to win freedom. If there is no struggle there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom and yet deprecate agitation are men who want crops without plowing up the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters. This struggle may be a moral one, or it may be a physical one, and it may be both moral and physical, but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them, and these will continue till they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress..

(10) Douglass was active politically, endorsing the anti-slavery platform of the Republican Party. He advised President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War, pressing him to emancipate all slaves and allowing their enlistment in the Union Army. This policy would prove crucial to the Union Army’s recruiting efforts and eventual victory over the Confederacy.

(11) Douglass became the first Black journalist granted access to the Capitol press galleries. Holding membership from 1871 to 1875, he diligently reported on legislative developments within the House and Senate during the Reconstruction era. His reports consistently provided vital information to Black communities, bridging the gap between legislative actions and their impacts on these communities.

(12) After the war, Douglass continued to work on full implementation of abolition. Despite the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment that outlawed slavery, Douglass argued that the work of Abolitionists is not done, and that equal citizenship and rights were essential to finish the cause. He supported the passage of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, pushing above all for the right for black men to vote.

(13) Douglass continued to advocate for full engagement and enfranchisement of Blacks in society, denouncing and speaking on segregation and the growing wave of violence against Blacks in the American South. Frustrated that the promises of Reconstruction had not come to fruition, Douglass spoke in New Hampshire during the winter of 1875. He pondered to audiences why the American people could stand for the centralization of slavery, but not stand the centralization for liberty.

(14) Douglass held several important public offices, including U.S. Marshal for the District of Columbia (1877 to 1881), Recorder of Deeds for the District of Columbia (1881 to 1886), and Minister to Haiti (1889 to 1891), further solidifying his role as a statesman and leader.

(15) Douglass was relentless in his push for equality through forceful speeches and writings until his death on February 20th, 1895. On February 21st, 1895, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution to adjourn to mourn his passing. Douglass laid in state in City Hall as tributes to his life spread across the country.

(16) Frederick Douglass’s impact is not confined to his era. His speeches, writings, and actions set precedents and laid foundations for future stages of the civil rights movement. His life story serves as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of determination. Reminding Americans that, If there is no struggle, there is no progress., the legacy of Frederick Douglass persists today in Easton, Maryland and across the world as his teachings, values, and ideals continue to inspire, challenge, and guide our nation towards a brighter, more inclusive future.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design to Frederick Douglass, in recognition of his contributions to the cause of freedom, human rights, and the abolition of slavery in the United States.

For purposes of the presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the Secretary) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.

After the award of the gold medal referred to in subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, where it shall be displayed as appropriate.

It is the sense of Congress that the National Museum of African American History and Culture should make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) available for display elsewhere, particularly at other locations and events associated with Frederick Douglass.

Medals struck under this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.

For purposes of section 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.

There is authorized to be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck pursuant to this Act.

The amounts received from the sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 5 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.