GETTING TO KNOW BLACK HISTORY: FREDRICK DOUGLASS

"I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong."

Fredrick Douglass has such an impressive life story. He was born a slave, and while enslaved, he learned to read and write, and even began teaching secret classes so other slaves could read and write. He escaped from slavery at the age of 20, and moved north. He got involved as an abolitionist, and became an anti-slavery lecturer. Later in life he wrote his autobiography Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, it became an instant success and was a best-seller. Within 3 years, his autobiography was translated and sold throughout Europe, and remember, this was in the 1800’s, and slavery was still legal, so for a former slave to accomplish all of this, is pretty amazing. He published 2 other autobiographies and was the editor of an abolitionist newspaper, and eventually created the Fredrick Douglass Paper. His speeches and writings played a big part in the abolishment of slavery, and opened many people’s eyes to how brutal and inhumane slavery was. For more info, go to...

http://www.winningthevote.org/FDouglass.html