Frederick Douglass statue moves to Emancipation Hall | theGrio

Frederick Douglass statue moves to Emancipation Hall | theGrio: A statue of Frederick Douglass, orator, writer, abolitionist, and advocate for equality of all people, will move from the atrium of a government office building to Capitol Hill’s Emancipation Hall to represent the District if Colombia.

Douglass will be one of three African-Americans represented in that hall, including busts of Sojourner Truth and Martin Luther King Jr.

Also, it will be the first statue to represent the city.

The Emancipation Hall holds two statues for each state. Statues of notable people that the state can call their own. Washington D.C. is not a state and therefore is not represented.

The federal capital, created in 1791, has long been struggling for recognition with Congress, which still oversees the city’s budget. It was not until 1961 that residents were allowed to vote in the presidential election.