[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 850 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 850

 Designating the House Press Gallery as the ``Frederick Douglass Press 
                               Gallery''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 7, 2023

  Mr. Donalds (for himself, Mr. Carson, Mr. Hunt, Mr. James, and Mr. 
 Owens) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                   Committee on House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Designating the House Press Gallery as the ``Frederick Douglass Press 
                               Gallery''.

Whereas Frederick Douglass was born to an enslaved family in 1818;
Whereas Douglass bravely escaped slavery in 1838, and spent much of his adult 
        life as a journalist in Rochester, New York;
Whereas Douglass published his first newspaper, The North Star, using his own 
        money in the pre-Civil War era;
Whereas Douglass was known for fiercely opposing slavery, championing equal 
        rights and women's rights and for being a forceful speaker;
Whereas, during the Civil War, Douglass was a recruiter for the first African-
        American army regiment;
Whereas Douglass met twice with President Lincoln, first about the pay and 
        treatment of Black soldiers and then to discuss the President's desire 
        to assist escaping slaves;
Whereas after Douglass' Rochester home was destroyed by fire (which Douglass 
        believed resulted from arson), he moved his family to Anacostia in 
        Washington, DC;
Whereas, in 1870, Douglass was asked to become editor of the New National Era, 
        which chronicled the progress of Blacks throughout the United States, 
        and he later bought the paper;
Whereas Douglass was the first Black reporter allowed into the Capitol press 
        galleries, where journalists watch lawmakers on the floors of the Senate 
        and the House of Representatives;
Whereas Douglass was a member of the congressional press galleries from 1871-
        1875;
Whereas Douglass reported on House and Senate legislation regularly to update 
        the African-American community during Reconstruction following the 13th, 
        14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution;
Whereas Douglass was recorded frequently in the congressional directory and 
        spent a significant amount of time writing and studying from the House 
        Press Gallery;
Whereas Douglass often visited the Capitol following his time as a member of the 
        congressional press galleries;
Whereas Douglass delivered the keynote speech at the unveiling of the 
        Emancipation Memorial in Washington's Lincoln Park;
Whereas, in 2007, Douglass was recognized by placing a plaque and painting of 
        him in his honor in the House Press Gallery;
Whereas, in 2012, Congress passed and the President signed Public Law 112-174, 
        which directed Frederick Douglass' statue placement in the U.S. Capitol 
        Visitor Center's Emancipation Hall; and
Whereas Douglass was a pioneer in journalism who broke through glass ceilings 
        throughout one of the most crucial times in American history, 
        exacerbated great perseverance to become an American hero, and became a 
        legend known in the House Press Gallery: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House Press Gallery is designated as the 
``Frederick Douglass Press Gallery''.
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