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Home • News

Frederick Who? Just When We Thought Trump's White House Couldn't Disrespect Frederick Douglass's Legacy Any Further

Frederick Who? Just When We Thought Trump's White House Couldn't Disrespect Frederick Douglass's Legacy Any Further
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By Paula Rogo · Updated October 24, 2020

The White House is taking another loss when it comes to its record with Frederick Douglass.

The press secretary’s office misspelled the abolitionist leader’s name in an email that was sent out to announce President Trump’s plan to name three people, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s niece, to a bicentennial commission in honor of Douglass.

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Frederick Douglass’ name is misspelled as “Douglas,” according to USA Today.

The gaffe is especially significant because Trump suggested Douglass was still alive in a meeting last February with African-American leaders (Douglass, of course, has been dead for more than a century).

“Frederick Douglass is an example of somebody who’s done an amazing job and is getting recognized more and more, I notice,” Trump said at a Black History Month event last year.

And, as noted by USA Today, that wasn’t the only typo:

In addition to misspelling Douglass’ name, you probably noticed the email also repeats “of the” before the commission’s title. 

Aaagaagghgghahghh.

That is not how you spell it.

You're the **White House**. Stop misspelling something in every written statement. pic.twitter.com/zeJEC6dgDi

— Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) February 7, 2018

 

Trump signed the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commission into law in November to plan a celebration of the 200-year anniversary of the famous abolitionist’s birth.