Lord Mayor's Column: Frederick Douglass mural reflects civic values of Cork

The new Frederick Douglass wall mural

A NEW wall mural has been painted on the walls of the courtyard of the Unitarian Church on Princes St. Famed American abolitionist and civil rights leader Frederick Douglass was a champion for human rights, equality, and freedom. Visiting our city in 1845, Frederick delivered several orations, organised by the Cork Anti-Slavery Society and the Cork Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society, which were very well attended and widely covered in the press. All Cork heard his message: one of tolerance, anti-prejudice — a cry against the evils of slavery.

Corkonians of all denominations, soon to face the ruination of the Great Hunger, warmly extended the hand of friendship to Douglass and his cause.

In welcoming Frederick Douglass, the people of Cork demonstrated real solidarity with an international injustice.

Douglass captured the true value of meaningful and practical solidarity when he stated in relation to Cork’s international outreach: “We are made to know that there are hearts beating in unison with our own.”

The light, life, and warmth

Frederick Douglass made lifelong friendships in Cork, writing to the mayor of Cork, Richard Dowden — also depicted on the mural — he highlighted the bonds of friendship: “I shall ever remember my visit with pleasure, and never shall I think of Cork without remembering that yourself and … kind friends … constituted the source from whence flowed much of the light, life, and warmth of humanity which I found in that good city”.

As a Corkman, I think the “light, life and warmth of humanity” to which Douglass refers is evident in our city today.

It is clear in the calendar of events organised in our city. It is manifest in many of the charitable and advocacy organisations who work to make our city a brighter place. The people who work to promote inclusivity and social justice.

A wonderful plaque is mounted on a reclaimed piece of Cork limestone. The plaque, which is a quote from Douglass, reads: “We have to do with the past only as we can make it useful to the present and to the future”.

This is about the legacy of Frederick Douglass, and those of you in Cork who have taken up his mantle. It is an invitation for all of us to take inspiration from the legacy of Douglass’ visit, and to make it useful for the city we live in today.

And let the wonderful artistry and craft of Liam Lavery, Eithne Ring, Christian Helleberg, and Jim Fahy serve to remind us all of this. Our thanks to them.

In this regard, I would like to extend a special thanks on behalf of the city to Reverend Mike O’Sullivan and the Cork Unitarian Church. The church and courtyard are a special place, a place of calm, and a place of welcome to all, right in the heart of our city.

Douglass generations

At the mural launch, I was also delighted to welcome Kenneth B Morris Jr, the great-great-great grandson of Frederick Douglass, Globe Lane Initiative board member, and co-founder and president of Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives. A big welcome also to his daughter, Nicole Morris.

I would like to extend my thanks to Caroline Dunham-Schroeter, Kristen Leary, and the whole Douglass Week team, fresh from a packed schedule in Belfast this year, for their tireless advocacy.

We are delighted to count Douglass Week among our long-term partners, and in 2023, Cork City Council was delighted to engage with the Frederick Douglas Family Initiatives and to meet with the Mayor of Rochester, Malik D Evans, and to lay a wreath on Douglass’ grave in his chosen home, as part of Lord Mayor-led delegations to the US. The legacy of Frederick Douglass’ time in Cork was also a key part of the Lord Mayor-led delegation to Washington in 2022.

The mural and its civic values

It is appropriate that the mural is in the courtyard of the Unitarian Church. Not only in view of Douglass’ association with the site, but also in terms of its values — democracy, reason, tolerance, freedom, the dignity inherent in every human person — these are the ideals Douglass himself espoused. They are indeed civic values, our values.

I would like to thank the artist Zabou, and Kerri, John, and Raff at the Walls Project for this striking piece of art. Zabou notes that her design was inspired by various metaphors: “The artwork combines a realistic and confident portrait of Douglass with elements highlighting his achievements and time in Cork (such as Mayor Dowden, the North Star, his book and a map of the USA and Ireland). The vibrant colours of the background were inspired by the Unitarian Church logo.”

Realising a project like this involves working with many partners, and I would like to thank June Paskalinan; Dr Naomi Masheti and the Cork Migrant Centre, and John Keohane for his generous support of the project.

I would also like to thank Michelle Carew and Louise Tangney in the Council Arts Office, as the project would not have been possible without the funding of the Creative Ireland Programme, and also acknowledge the support of the Council’s Corporate Affairs & International Relations Directorate, and the Community Recognition Fund.

A whole series of people have been working on this project behind the scenes. I also wish to take this opportunity to sincerely thank my fellow members of Cork City Council who have, over the term of this council, tirelessly advocated for a fitting way to commemorate the legacy of Douglass’ 1845 visit.

At our best, we are a city of welcomes, a safe place for people of all abilities, nationalities, races, genders, sexual orientations, ages, and religions. Our city’s motto, “Statio Bene Fida Carinis”, translates as a “a safe harbour for ships”. We are also a “safe harbour for people”. I think Frederick Douglass would have liked that message.

Frederick Douglass’ orations in Cork were international news, and the most fitting legacy of his historic visit is for Corkonians, like our ancestors in 1845, to continue living in that spirit of “light, life, and warmth of humanity”. To live in the sense, clearly asserted by Douglass, that “our hearts beat in unison” — that there is far more which unites us than divides us. This courtyard mural celebrates that vision. Simply put, Frederick Douglass’ legacy lies in the way we treat each other today. Our hearts beat in unison, our hearts beat in unison.

My sincere thanks to Ciarán Kelleher Byrne, International Relations, Cork City Council, for his help with this column.