‘Representation is powerful’: Bust of New Bedford abolitionist unveiled in Senate chamber

Nearly 130 years after his passing, famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass made history once again. On his chosen birthday of Feb. 14, a bust of Douglass was unveiled in the Massachusetts Senate Chamber.

In the Senate chamber where Douglass delivered his passionate anti-slavery speeches, his bust became the first added in more than 125 years — the first ever of a Black person.

Above the bust is a quote by Douglass that reads, “Truth, justice, liberty, and humanity will ultimately prevail.”

“Today, Frederick Douglass takes his long overdue place among our nation’s founding fathers in the Senate Chamber, where he will inspire generations of Massachusetts lawmakers to lead as he did, with truth, justice, liberty, and humanity,” said Senate President Karen Spilka in a press release.

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According to the release, the bust portrays Douglass as an “older man deep into his career as a politician and orator,” it was commissioned by the State House Art Commission as part of Senate President Spilka’s commitment to adding representation in the chambers.

“Representation is powerful. Anyone should be able to walk into our Senate chamber and see themselves contributing to our dialogue as a Commonwealth, and with this historic unveiling we take an important step toward listening to, and lifting up, more voices in our Commonwealth,” stated Senate President Spilka.

The solid bronze figure is a replica of a bust created by the late sculptor Lloyd Lillie, it was made by Sincere Metal Works in Amesbury.

Why was Feb. 14 chosen?

In Massachusetts, Feb. 14 is proclaimed Frederick Douglass Day, in honor of his lifelong fight for equality here in New Bedford and throughout the country.

“Though he was not born here, in Massachusetts we like to call Frederick Douglass one of our own,” Senate President Karen Spilka said during the unveiling. “He came to our state after escaping enslavement. This is where he wanted to come.”

As the true date of his birth was unknown, Douglass had chosen this significant date to celebrate as his birthday. In his autobiography, he stated that his former enslaver told him that he believed Douglass was born in February of 1818, that information and sweet memories of his mother calling him her “little valentine” led Douglass to adopt Valentine’s Day as his birthday.