NAHANT — The day has been coming for a long time, but soon Ray Pisano’s tribute to Frederick Douglass will be on display.
The 99-year-old Nahant man’s sculpture will be placed in a downtown Lynn park that is named after one of the pioneers of racial equality who lived in the city at one point.
There is some history to the location of the park in Central Square in relation to Douglass. The abolitionist was removed from a train at the age of 23 because he refused to sit in a segregated car. Now 180 years later, Douglass will be memorialized for all to see.
Pisano said that he is thankful for the opportunity to celebrate a worthy individual and that the monument in which the bronze will be set in the park is expected to be delivered sometime this week. He is also grateful for another opportunity to do something significant for the community.
Visitors to the park will see what Douglass is thought to have looked like when he was in his 20s and lived in Lynn. While Douglass may have lived in the middle of the 19th century, his words and impact still live on today, Pisano said, adding that the sculpture and its delivery are actually quite timely.
“Frederick Douglass has been influential for many years but since the more recent advent of racial struggle upon which is being of high consideration lately. ‘Black Lives Matter,’ for example. You see that sign all over the place and it’s worthy. We’re taking more notice now than perhaps we have in a long time. Douglass being a black man is being celebrated at a time when the movement could use his added emphasis.”
Those young and old will get to visit the park and be reminded of all the great things that Douglass has done for this country and how he is still impacting the growth and evolution of the United States.
For those who call Lynn home, Douglass proves just how impactful the city’s residents can be while the town of Nahant can be proud that one of their residents has the artistic ability to permanently enshrine a hero of this nation. This rings doubly true as we approach a holiday where we celebrate our freedom.
