Frederick Douglass ran for US Senate?

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May 2, 2008

Frederick Douglass ran for US Senate?

Our buddy Dan Lehr of NewsChannel9 posted a screen capture from FOX News* that would be amusing if it were not so depressing. One of the on-air personalities is even shown laughing about the idea that a crew member was trying to dig up video of the Lincoln-Douglas debates (from the 1850s). But then this same crew puts up a graphic depicting Abraham Lincoln opposite Frederick Douglass, instead of Stephen Douglas.

I checked Wikipedia after writing the title to this post, just to be sure the eminent abolitionist (and so much more) Mr. Douglass did not, in fact, ever run for the United States Senate, and learned something today: he was named (but did not really run as) the vice presidential nominee in 1872 for the Equal Rights Party. But during the era when Abraham Lincoln was famously debating Stephen Douglas, Frederick Douglass was still fighting for his brothers and sisters to be free.

Furthermore, I would imagine that Frederick Douglass at least sympathized with the newly minted Republican Party, which found its first White House victory with Abraham Lincoln; Stephen Douglas, on the other hand, was a Democrat.

Make sure to check out the post at Vote08, as there is another funny-yet-sad photo there.

*I am not picking on FOX News, as I have seen similar blunders from each of the 24-hour cable news networks (like a picture of Osama bin Laden when the subject was Barack Obama). I think the pressure to be so quick with every story, while at the same time trying to fill 24/7, causes crap like this; but it seems to be increasing.

News | By joe lance | 2:53 PM

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