This week's class and the blog led me to look further into Fredrick Douglass's involvement in the women's rights movement. I found a speech by Fredrick Douglass, addressing the International Council of Women in Washington DC in 1888. The speech provides a window into Douglass's reasoning for supporting women's rights.
He says, "When I ran away form slavery, it was for
myself; when I advocated emancipation, it was for my people; but when I stood
up for the rights of woman, self was out of the question, and I found a little
nobility in the act."
He also goes on to say that, "All good causes are mutually helpful. The
benefits accruing from this movement for the equal rights of woman are not
confined or limited to woman only. They will be shared by every effort to
promote the progress and welfare of mankind every where and in all ages."
It seems to me that his support of the women's movement comes from a strong belief in individual liberty and human rights.
- Anu
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