Frederick Douglass, whose birthday is honored on February 14, was born a slave in 1818, and now remembered for his eloquence, activism, and fearless championing against slavery.
The exact date of his birth was unknown by Douglass, but he picked February 14 as a date to celebrate his birth.
Douglass had endured many of the awful transgressions typified by slaveryâ??s bonds. He was separated from his family and physically and psychologically abused. As a child, Douglass was taught the alphabet by Sophia Auld, his white mistress, and after being found out by the master of the household, secretly educated himself. He escaped from slavery in 1838 and settled down in Massachusetts.
Radical abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison spoke at a meeting of the Bristol County Anti-Slavery Society, in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on August 9, 1841. Induced to speak himself about freeing slaves before the assembled group of abolitionists, Douglass caught Garrisonâ??s attention.
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