Massachusetts unveils bust of famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass

By STEVE LeBLANC
Associated Press

BOSTON (AP) — A bust of famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass was unveiled in the Massachusetts Senate Chamber on Wednesday. It’s the first bust of an African American to be permanently added to the Massachusetts Statehouse. It’s also the first bust to be added to the Senate Chamber in more than 125 years. Senate President Karen Spilka emphasized the ties that Douglass had to the state. He lived for a time in Massachusetts and delivered speeches in the Senate chamber and at Boston’s Faneuil Hall. Douglass had opted to celebrate February 14 as his birthday since the true date of his birth was unknown.