Frederick Douglass, Ambassador to Haiti, 1889
Pavillon de la République d'Haïti à Exposition Universelle de Chicago, 1893 Visual materials from the Frederick Douglass Memorial and Historical Association records. 1893. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division.
The Frederick Douglass Papers at the Library of Congress presents the papers of the nineteenth-century African American abolitionist who escaped from slavery and then risked his freedom by becoming an outspoken antislavery lecturer, writer, and publisher. Frederick Douglass was named ambassador to the country of Haiti in 1889. During that time, he conducted many diplomatic visits and produced numerous speeches on the state of the country. Douglass viewed Haiti as a beckon of hope and freedom for African Americans. He addressed a crowd at the Haitian Pavilion (pictured on the right) at the world fair on January 2, 1893 and stated:
We should not forget that the freedom you and I enjoy to-day is largely due to the brave stand taken by the black sons, of Haiti ninety years ago; striking for their freedom, they struck for the freedom of every black man in the world.
This digitized collection, linked below, includes many of Douglass's speeches, papers, and newspaper reports on Douglass's connection to Haiti.
Frederick Douglass Papers at the Library of CongressFrederick Douglass Papers at the Library of Congress
This collection presents the papers of the nineteenth-century African American abolitionist who escaped from slavery and then risked his freedom by becoming an outspoken antislavery lecturer, writer, and publisher. The online collection, containing approximately 7,400 items (38,000 images), spans the years 1841-1964, with the bulk of the material dating from 1862 to 1865. Many of Douglass’s earlier writings were destroyed when his house in Rochester, New York, burned in 1872.
Search for materials relating to "Haiti" in the Frederick Douglass collection
U.S. Occupation in Haiti, 1915
James Weldon Johnson. NAACP Collection. Created between1900 and 1920. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division.
President Woodrow Wilson ordered U.S. Marines to occupy Haiti in 1915 following a coup d’état. Stirred by reports of widespread atrocities related to the American occupation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) sent James Weldon Johnson to Haiti to investigate for six weeks. Johnson exposed the abuses he found in a series of articles for The Nation, which roused international attention and led to the abatement of the worst excesses. He also briefed Warren G. Harding, the Republican presidential candidate, who used the issue to defeat Democratic candidate James Cox. When Harding became president, he ordered a special Senate investigation. The NAACP pressed for the restoration of full Haitian sovereignty. The U.S. finally withdrew from Haiti in 1934.
In the Library of Congress's Manuscript Division, there are newspaper clippings detailing how the United States news media covered the occupation, including some pieces written by James Weldon Johnson, secretary of the NAACP and known critic of U.S intervention in Haiti.
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