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To not be uncomfortable with our history as Americans is to be in denial of it. Censoring the atrocities in our collective past so as not to disturb students and their parents does nothing more than breed the sort of ignorance that fuels present and future horrors. This truth is bracingly conveyed by “Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches,” a documentary from director Julia Marchesi and producer Oluwaseun Babalola that plays not like a dry history lesson, but an urgent bulletin from the past which speaks to our present moment. Douglass is unquestionably one of our nation’s towering figures most sorely deserving of multiple films made about his life, and by zeroing in on five of his most impactful speeches, Marchesi and Babalola build an awe-inspiring portrait of how the trailblazing abolitionist was not only as great an orator as Abraham Lincoln, but a true champion of equality whose words continue to resonate throughout the ages. 

With its running time clocking in at a mere hour, the film may seem at first glance like a TV special designed to air during Black History Month, yet its style is unmistakably cinematic. Six of the finest actors working today are tasked with reading Douglass’ words, which are occasionally accompanied by gorgeous animation resembling murals in motion. Whereas the other performers are each assigned a particular speech, André Holland breathes life into excerpts from Douglass’ autobiographies, examinations of America from the perspective of a formerly enslaved person that should be required reading in every U.S. classroom. Key among the film’s array of historians are David Blight , whose Pulitzer Prize-winning biography,  Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom , inspired the picture, and executive producer Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the wonderful host of “Finding Your Roots” and 2009’s documentary “Looking for Lincoln,” the latter of which would make a fitting double bill with this one. My dad, who also happens to be a lifelong Lincoln scholar, has always credited Douglass as “Lincoln’s conscience,” and indeed, Gates notes how the sixteenth president’s maturing view of Black people was formed in great part by the tireless agitator he welcomed into the White House.

Though Douglass’ astonishing life story is worthy of an expansive miniseries, this film has only the time to whittle it down to a handful of enticing bullet points. Born around 1818, Douglass believes it was “divine providence” that eventually sent him from the plantation in Chesapeake Bay where he grew up to his role as the servant of his master’s family in Baltimore. It was there that the slaveholder’s wife, Sophia Auld, taught Douglass how to read—not realizing it was illegal—until her husband reprimanded her, stating that such education would make him “unmanageable.” After making an escape that would be worthy of a film in itself, Douglass settled in Massachusetts, and was asked by white abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison to deliver his first speech, 1841’s “I Have Come To Tell You Something About Slavery.” Denzel Whitaker , who was unforgettable in 2007’s “ The Great Debaters ,” brings fierce intensity to these words, as Douglass overcomes his initial embarrassment at addressing an audience of white people to convey how no one can illustrate the evils of slavery like those who have actually “suffered under the lash.” Douglass would go on to become one of the most photographed men of the 19th century, and the brilliant artist Bisa Butler , who created her own quilted portrait of the man, observes how his choice to look directly at us “is a challenge and a provocation in itself.”

That is precisely what the actors often do here, though perhaps no more indelibly than Jonathan Majors , who embodies the rage felt by Douglass after having witnessed how Blacks were treated like human beings in other countries while traveling abroad. Majors likens Douglass’ description of slavery in the 1847 speech, “Country, Conscience, And The Anti-Slavery Cause,” where he describes it as a method of destroying Blacks by “crushing them to the earth,” to the on-camera lynching of George Floyd. Yet the actor who comes closest to channeling Douglass in every impeccably nuanced syllable is Nicole Beharie , who is tasked with tackling 1852’s “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”, dubbed by Gates as “the oratorical masterpiece of the abolitionist movement.” Though her spellbinding performance is juxtaposed with Blight breaking down the three movements of the speech, Beharie needs no assistance in illuminating the mastery of Douglass’ impassioned call to action, while never having to raise her voice in order to chill our blood. She isn’t reciting his text so much as  becoming  it. 

It’s deeply moving to hear Douglass defend the honor of Black soldiers in his 1863 speech, “The Proclamation And a Negro Army,” read by Colman Domingo , while his final speech, 1894’s “Lessons of the Hour,” lays out the crucial steps toward achieving equality that have yet to be followed today. The actor selected to read these words is Jeffrey Wright , whom I have long envisioned to play Douglass and will soon be narrating the Apple TV+ miniseries, “Lincoln’s Dilemma,” which promises to explore the particulars of the abolitionist’s relationship with the revered yet undeniably flawed president. “The more human we make our heroes,” Gates reminds us, “the more noble they become.” “Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches” succeeds as an enormously enticing introduction to the life of one of the greatest and most important of all Americans, and it leaves us wanting so much more, namely several full-length films about Douglass and other Black abolitionists. Only briefly does the film touch upon Douglass’ personal life, particularly his devoted and long-suffering wife of 44 years, Anna, whom he failed to include in his writing. There’s also glimmers of complexity in Garrison and the other white abolitionists, who ordered Douglass to “put more plantation” in his voice so that he wouldn’t “sound as white,” prompting him to pen his first eloquent autobiography. 

After each speech in the film is delivered, the actor has an opportunity to step out of character and reflect on the startling timeliness of Douglass’ insights. Domingo says that he can’t imagine a better time to put Douglass’ words on a stage than right now, as we are finding ourselves once again “interrogating the soul of America.” Douglass may have died well over a century ago, but he remains our collective conscience, urging us to become the nation we never were and we must strive toward making a reality nevertheless.

On HBO tomorrow, February 23rd.

Matt Fagerholm

Matt Fagerholm is the former Literary Editor at RogerEbert.com and is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association. 

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Film credits.

Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches (2022)

Nicole Beharie as Self

Colman Domingo as Self

Jonathan Majors as Self

Denzel Whitaker as Self

Jeffrey Wright as Self

David Blight as Self

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. as Self

André Holland as Narrator (voice)

Bisa Butler as Self

• Julia Marchesi
• Derek Ambrosi
• Oluwaseun Babalola

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Frederick douglass: in five speeches, tv-ma | documentaries | 58 min | 2022.

The HBO documentary Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches brings to life the words of our country’s most famous anti-slavery activist. Actors Nicole Beharie ( Scenes from a Marriage ), Colman Domingo ( Euphoria ), Jonathan Majors ( Lovecraft Country ), Denzel Whitaker and Jeffrey Wright ( Westworld ) draw from five of Douglass’ legendary speeches, to represent a different moment in the tumultuous history of 19th century America as well as a different stage of Douglass’ long and celebrated life. Inspired by David Blight’s Pulitzer Prize winning biography, Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom and executive produced by scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. ( Black Art: In the Absence of Light ), the film features narration of Douglass’ autobiographies by André Holland and context provided by Blight and Gates to remind us how Frederick Douglass’ words about racial injustice still resonate deeply today.   After his escape from slavery at age 20, Frederick Douglass went on to become the most famous Black man in the nineteenth century, known for the power of his words. Entirely self-taught, Douglass was a powerful writer and master orator, crafting speeches that called out American hypocrisy and challenged the nation to live up to its founding principles. Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches offers a new approach to understanding Douglass’ story, guided entirely by  his own words to chart his rise from a passionate young agitator to a composed statesman, and ultimately to a disenchanted but still hopeful older man. Though his actual voice was never recorded, the power of these performances offers an opportunity to hear the potency of his words with timely urgency over a century after his time.      Speeches include:

“I Have Come To Tell You Something About Slavery” (1841) performed by Denzel Whitaker. At an anti-slavery convention, Douglass recounts his story of being raised as a slave publicly for the first time.

“Country, Conscience, And The Anti-Slavery Cause” (1847) performed by Jonathan Majors. Douglass addresses the American Anti-Slavery Society on his return from the British Isles which he found to be more accepting and equitable than his own country. “What, To The Slave, Is The Fourth Of July?” (1852) performed by Nicole Beharie. Douglass reminds his audience of the continuing enslavement of his people, 76 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence. “The Proclamation And A Negro Army” (1863) performed by Colman Domingo. Douglass responds to the Emancipation Proclamation and calls for the Black man to be allowed to fight in the war. “Lessons Of The Hour” (1894) performed by Jeffrey Wright. Douglass urges America to eliminate prejudice and look to its founding principles. Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches is a McGee Media & Inkwell Media Production. Directed by Julia Marchesi; produced by Oluwaseun Babalola, edited by Derek Ambrosi; narration by Andre Holland; historical consultant, David Blight; executive produced by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Dyllan McGee.

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Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass was a leader in the abolitionist movement, an early champion of women’s rights and author of ‘Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.’

(1818-1895)

Who Was Frederick Douglass?

Among Douglass’ writings are several autobiographies eloquently describing his experiences in slavery and his life after the Civil War , including the well-known work Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave .

Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey was born around 1818 into slavery in Talbot County, Maryland. As was often the case with slaves, the exact year and date of Douglass' birth are unknown, though later in life he chose to celebrate it on February 14.

Douglass initially lived with his maternal grandmother, Betty Bailey. At a young age, Douglass was selected to live in the home of the plantation owners, one of whom may have been his father.

His mother, who was an intermittent presence in his life, died when he was around 10.

Learning to Read and Write

Defying a ban on teaching slaves to read and write, Baltimore slaveholder Hugh Auld’s wife Sophia taught Douglass the alphabet when he was around 12. When Auld forbade his wife to offer more lessons, Douglass continued to learn from white children and others in the neighborhood.

It was through reading that Douglass’ ideological opposition to slavery began to take shape. He read newspapers avidly and sought out political writing and literature as much as possible. In later years, Douglass credited The Columbian Orator with clarifying and defining his views on human rights.

Douglass shared his newfound knowledge with other enslaved people. Hired out to William Freeland, he taught other slaves on the plantation to read the New Testament at a weekly church service.

Interest was so great that in any week, more than 40 slaves would attend lessons. Although Freeland did not interfere with the lessons, other local slave owners were less understanding. Armed with clubs and stones, they dispersed the congregation permanently.

With Douglass moving between the Aulds, he was later made to work for Edward Covey, who had a reputation as a "slave-breaker.” Covey’s constant abuse nearly broke the 16-year-old Douglass psychologically. Eventually, however, Douglass fought back, in a scene rendered powerfully in his first autobiography.

After losing a physical confrontation with Douglass, Covey never beat him again. Douglass tried to escape from slavery twice before he finally succeeded.

Wife and Children

Douglass married Anna Murray, a free Black woman, on September 15, 1838. Douglass had fallen in love with Murray, who assisted him in his final attempt to escape slavery in Baltimore.

On September 3, 1838, Douglass boarded a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland. Murray had provided him with some of her savings and a sailor's uniform. He carried identification papers obtained from a free Black seaman. Douglass made his way to the safe house of abolitionist David Ruggles in New York in less than 24 hours.

Once he had arrived, Douglass sent for Murray to meet him in New York, where they married and adopted the name of Johnson to disguise Douglass’ identity. Anna and Frederick then settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts, which had a thriving free Black community. There they adopted Douglass as their married name.

Douglass and Anna had five children together: Rosetta, Lewis Henry, Frederick Jr., Charles Redmond and Annie, who died at the age of 10. Charles and Rosetta assisted their father in the production of his newspaper The North Star . Anna remained a loyal supporter of Douglass' public work, despite marital strife caused by his relationships with several other women.

After Anna’s death, Douglass married Helen Pitts, a feminist from Honeoye, New York. Pitts was the daughter of Gideon Pitts Jr., an abolitionist colleague. A graduate of Mount Holyoke College , Pitts worked on a radical feminist publication and shared many of Douglass’ moral principles.

Their marriage caused considerable controversy, since Pitts was white and nearly 20 years younger than Douglass. Douglass’ children were especially displeased with the relationship. Nonetheless, Douglass and Pitts remained married until his death 11 years later.

Abolitionist

After settling as a free man with his wife Anna in New Bedford in 1838, Douglass was eventually asked to tell his story at abolitionist meetings, and he became a regular anti-slavery lecturer.

The founder of the weekly journal The Liberator , William Lloyd Garrison , was impressed with Douglass’ strength and rhetorical skill and wrote of him in his newspaper. Several days after the story ran, Douglass delivered his first speech at the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society's annual convention in Nantucket.

Crowds were not always hospitable to Douglass. While participating in an 1843 lecture tour through the Midwest, Douglass was chased and beaten by an angry mob before being rescued by a local Quaker family.

Following the publication of his first autobiography in 1845, Douglass traveled overseas to evade recapture. He set sail for Liverpool on August 16, 1845, and eventually arrived in Ireland as the Potato Famine was beginning. He remained in Ireland and Britain for two years, speaking to large crowds on the evils of slavery.

During this time, Douglass’ British supporters gathered funds to purchase his legal freedom. In 1847, the famed writer and orator returned to the United States a free man.

'The North Star'

Upon his return, Douglass produced some abolitionist newspapers: The North Star , Frederick Douglass Weekly , Frederick Douglass' Paper , Douglass' Monthly and New National Era .

The motto of The North Star was "Right is of no Sex – Truth is of no Color – God is the Father of us all, and we are all brethren."

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'Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass'

In New Bedford, Massachusetts, Douglass joined a Black church and regularly attended abolitionist meetings. He also subscribed to Garrison's The Liberator .

At the urging of Garrison, Douglass wrote and published his first autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave , in 1845. The book was a bestseller in the United States and was translated into several European languages.

Although the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass garnered Douglass many fans, some critics expressed doubt that a former enslaved person with no formal education could have produced such elegant prose.

Other Books by Frederick Douglass

Douglass published three versions of his autobiography during his lifetime, revising and expanding on his work each time. My Bondage and My Freedom appeared in 1855.

In 1881, Douglass published Life and Times of Frederick Douglass , which he revised in 1892.

Women’s Rights

In addition to abolition, Douglass became an outspoken supporter of women’s rights. In 1848, he was the only African American to attend the Seneca Falls convention on women's rights. Elizabeth Cady Stanton asked the assembly to pass a resolution stating the goal of women's suffrage. Many attendees opposed the idea.

Douglass, however, stood and spoke eloquently in favor, arguing that he could not accept the right to vote as a Black man if women could not also claim that right. The resolution passed.

Yet Douglass would later come into conflict with women’s rights activists for supporting the Fifteenth Amendment , which banned suffrage discrimination based on race while upholding sex-based restrictions.

Civil War and Reconstruction

By the time of the Civil War , Douglass was one of the most famous Black men in the country. He used his status to influence the role of African Americans in the war and their status in the country. In 1863, Douglass conferred with President Abraham Lincoln regarding the treatment of Black soldiers, and later with President Andrew Johnson on the subject of Black suffrage.

President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation , which took effect on January 1, 1863, declared the freedom of enslaved people in Confederate territory. Despite this victory, Douglass supported John C. Frémont over Lincoln in the 1864 election, citing his disappointment that Lincoln did not publicly endorse suffrage for Black freedmen.

Slavery everywhere in the United States was subsequently outlawed by the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution .

Douglass was appointed to several political positions following the war. He served as president of the Freedman's Savings Bank and as chargé d'affaires for the Dominican Republic.

After two years, he resigned from his ambassadorship over objections to the particulars of U.S. government policy. He was later appointed minister-resident and consul-general to the Republic of Haiti, a post he held between 1889 and 1891.

In 1877, Douglass visited one of his former owners, Thomas Auld. Douglass had met with Auld's daughter, Amanda Auld Sears, years before. The visit held personal significance for Douglass, although some criticized him for the reconciliation.

Vice Presidential Candidate

Douglass became the first African American nominated for vice president of the United States as Victoria Woodhull 's running mate on the Equal Rights Party ticket in 1872.

Nominated without his knowledge or consent, Douglass never campaigned. Nonetheless, his nomination marked the first time that an African American appeared on a presidential ballot.

Douglass died on February 20, 1895, of a massive heart attack or stroke shortly after returning from a meeting of the National Council of Women in Washington, D.C. He was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery in Rochester, New York.

QUICK FACTS

• Name: Frederick Douglass
• Birth Year: 1818
• Birth State: Maryland
• Birth City: Tuckahoe
• Birth Country: United States
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Frederick Douglass was a leader in the abolitionist movement, an early champion of women’s rights and author of ‘Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.’
• Interesting Facts
• Frederick Douglass first learned to read and write at the age of 12 from a Baltimore slaveholder's wife.
• To much controversy, Douglass married white abolitionist feminist Helen Pitts.
• Douglass became the first African American nominated for vice president of the United States.
• Death Year: 1895
• Death date: February 20, 1895
• Death City: Washington, D.C.
• Death Country: United States

We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !

CITATION INFORMATION

• Article Title: Frederick Douglass Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/activists/frederick-douglass
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E Television Networks
• Last Updated: July 15, 2021
• Original Published Date: April 3, 2014
• If there is no struggle there is no progress. . . . Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.
• Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have the exact measure of the injustice and wrong which will be imposed on them.
• I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.
• No man can put a chain about the ankle of his fellow man without at last finding the other end fastened about his own neck.
• People might not get all they work for in this world, but they must certainly work for all they get.
• I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong.
• Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe.
• The life of the nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful, and virtuous.
• [I]n all the relations of life and death, we are met by the color line. We cannot ignore it if we would, and ought not if we could.
• If I ever had any patriotism, or any capacity for the feeling, it was whipt out of me long since by the lash of the American soul-drivers.
• The ground which a colored man occupies in this country is, every inch of it, sternly disputed.
• The lesson of all the ages on this point is, that a wrong done to one man is a wrong done to all men. It may not be felt at the moment, and the evil day may be long delayed, but so sure as there is a moral government of the universe, so sure will the harvest of evil come.
• Believing, as I do firmly believe, that human nature, as a whole, contains more good than evil, I am willing to trust the whole, rather than a part, in the conduct of human affairs.
• To educate a man is to unfit him to be a slave.
• To deny education to any people is one of the greatest crimes against human nature. It is easy to deny them the means of freedom and the rightful pursuit of happiness and to defeat the very end of their being.
• There is no negro problem. The problem is whether the American people have loyalty enough, honor enough, patriotism enough, to live up to their own constitution.
• Let us have no country but a free country, liberty for all and chains for none. Let us have one law, one gospel, equal rights for all, and I am sure God's blessing will be upon us and we shall be a prosperous and glorious nation.

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: Famed anti-slavery activist Frederick Douglass' words about racial injustice are brought to life in this documentary.

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Famed anti-slavery activist Frederick Douglass' words about racial injustice are brought to life in this documentary.

Cast and Crew

Starring: Andre Holland , Nicole Beharie , Colman Domingo , Jonathan Majors , Denzel Whitaker , Jeffrey Wright , Henry Louis Gates Jr. , Sarah Lewis , Keidrick Roy , Bisa Butler , Nzadi Keita , Ken Morris , David Blight

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Frederick Douglass - An American Life

This National Park Service biography of the former slave and abolitionist is dramatized at several historic locations, including the Frederi… read more

This National Park Service biography of the former slave and abolitionist is dramatized at several historic locations, including the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site in Washington, D.C. Part of the National Archives collections, the film was directed by William Greaves , a prominent African American filmmaker and producer, who created a variety of fiction and nonfiction films from the 1960s through the 2000s. Along with depictions of Douglass at various ages, the film includes portrayals of John Brown, Abraham Lincoln , and Harriet Tubman . close

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• National Park Service National Park Service
• American History TV
• Reel America

Airing Details

• Feb 13, 2021 | 10:57pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 14, 2021 | 4:57pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 15, 2021 | 2:57am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 20, 2021 | 8:58am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 26, 2021 | 7:59pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 27, 2021 | 12:01am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 27, 2021 | 3:59am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Mar 01, 2021 | 8:00am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Mar 01, 2021 | 11:51am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Mar 01, 2021 | 3:45pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Jun 02, 2021 | 12:42am EDT | C-SPAN 3
• Jun 02, 2021 | 5:58am EDT | C-SPAN 3
• Jun 02, 2021 | 11:11am EDT | C-SPAN 3
• Jun 02, 2021 | 4:27pm EDT | C-SPAN 3
• Jun 02, 2021 | 7:27pm EDT | C-SPAN 3

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Frederick Douglass

By: History.com Editors

Updated: March 8, 2024 | Original: October 27, 2009

Frederick Douglass was a formerly enslaved man who became a prominent activist, author and public speaker. He became a leader in the abolitionist movement , which sought to end the practice of slavery, before and during the Civil War . After that conflict and the Emancipation Proclamation of 1862, he continued to push for equality and human rights until his death in 1895.

Douglass’ 1845 autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave , described his time as an enslaved worker in Maryland . It was one of three autobiographies he penned, along with dozens of noteworthy speeches, despite receiving minimal formal education.

An advocate for women’s rights, and specifically the right of women to vote , Douglass’ legacy as an author and leader lives on. His work served as an inspiration to the civil rights movement of the 1960s and beyond.

Who Was Frederick Douglass?

Frederick Douglass was born into slavery in or around 1818 in Talbot County, Maryland. Douglass himself was never sure of his exact birth date.

His mother was an enslaved Black women and his father was white and of European descent. He was actually born Frederick Bailey (his mother’s name), and took the name Douglass only after he escaped. His full name at birth was “Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey.”

After he was separated from his mother as an infant, Douglass lived for a time with his maternal grandmother, Betty Bailey. However, at the age of six, he was moved away from her to live and work on the Wye House plantation in Maryland.

From there, Douglass was “given” to Lucretia Auld, whose husband, Thomas, sent him to work with his brother Hugh in Baltimore. Douglass credits Hugh’s wife Sophia with first teaching him the alphabet. With that foundation, Douglass then taught himself to read and write. By the time he was hired out to work under William Freeland, he was teaching other enslaved people to read using the Bible .

As word spread of his efforts to educate fellow enslaved people, Thomas Auld took him back and transferred him to Edward Covey, a farmer who was known for his brutal treatment of the enslaved people in his charge. Roughly 16 at this time, Douglass was regularly whipped by Covey.

Frederick Douglass Escapes from Slavery

After several failed attempts at escape, Douglass finally left Covey’s farm in 1838, first boarding a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland. From there he traveled through Delaware , another slave state, before arriving in New York and the safe house of abolitionist David Ruggles.

Once settled in New York, he sent for Anna Murray, a free Black woman from Baltimore he met while in captivity with the Aulds. She joined him, and the two were married in September 1838. They had five children together.

From Slavery to Abolitionist Leader

After their marriage, the young couple moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts , where they met Nathan and Mary Johnson, a married couple who were born “free persons of color.” It was the Johnsons who inspired the couple to take the surname Douglass, after the character in the Sir Walter Scott poem, “The Lady of the Lake.”

In New Bedford, Douglass began attending meetings of the abolitionist movement . During these meetings, he was exposed to the writings of abolitionist and journalist William Lloyd Garrison.

The two men eventually met when both were asked to speak at an abolitionist meeting, during which Douglass shared his story of slavery and escape. It was Garrison who encouraged Douglass to become a speaker and leader in the abolitionist movement.

By 1843, Douglass had become part of the American Anti-Slavery Society’s “Hundred Conventions” project, a six-month tour through the United States. Douglass was physically assaulted several times during the tour by those opposed to the abolitionist movement.

In one particularly brutal attack, in Pendleton, Indiana , Douglass’ hand was broken. The injuries never fully healed, and he never regained full use of his hand.

In 1858, radical abolitionist John Brown stayed with Frederick Douglass in Rochester, New York, as he planned his raid on the U.S. military arsenal at Harper’s Ferry , part of his attempt to establish a stronghold of formerly enslaved people in the mountains of Maryland and Virginia. Brown was caught and hanged for masterminding the attack, offering the following prophetic words as his final statement: “I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood.”

'Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass'

Two years later, Douglass published the first and most famous of his autobiographies, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave . (He also authored My Bondage and My Freedom and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass).

In it Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass , he wrote: “From my earliest recollection, I date the entertainment of a deep conviction that slavery would not always be able to hold me within its foul embrace; and in the darkest hours of my career in slavery, this living word of faith and spirit of hope departed not from me, but remained like ministering angels to cheer me through the gloom.”

He also noted, “Thus is slavery the enemy of both the slave and the slaveholder.”

Frederick Douglass in Ireland and Great Britain

Later that same year, Douglass would travel to Ireland and Great Britain. At the time, the former country was just entering the early stages of the Irish Potato Famine , or the Great Hunger.

While overseas, he was impressed by the relative freedom he had as a man of color, compared to what he had experienced in the United States. During his time in Ireland, he met the Irish nationalist Daniel O’Connell , who became an inspiration for his later work.

In England, Douglass also delivered what would later be viewed as one of his most famous speeches, the so-called “London Reception Speech.”

In the speech, he said, “What is to be thought of a nation boasting of its liberty, boasting of its humanity, boasting of its Christianity , boasting of its love of justice and purity, and yet having within its own borders three millions of persons denied by law the right of marriage?… I need not lift up the veil by giving you any experience of my own. Every one that can put two ideas together, must see the most fearful results from such a state of things…”

Frederick Douglass’ Abolitionist Paper

When he returned to the United States in 1847, Douglass began publishing his own abolitionist newsletter, the North Star . He also became involved in the movement for women’s rights .

He was the only African American to attend the Seneca Falls Convention , a gathering of women’s rights activists in New York, in 1848.

He spoke forcefully during the meeting and said, “In this denial of the right to participate in government, not merely the degradation of woman and the perpetuation of a great injustice happens, but the maiming and repudiation of one-half of the moral and intellectual power of the government of the world.”

He later included coverage of women’s rights issues in the pages of the North Star . The newsletter’s name was changed to Frederick Douglass’ Paper in 1851, and was published until 1860, just before the start of the Civil War .

Frederick Douglass Quotes

In 1852, he delivered another of his more famous speeches, one that later came to be called “What to a slave is the 4th of July?”

In one section of the speech, Douglass noted, “What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade, and solemnity, are, to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy—a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages.”

For the 24th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation , in 1886, Douglass delivered a rousing address in Washington, D.C., during which he said, “where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe.”

Frederick Douglass During the Civil War

During the brutal conflict that divided the still-young United States, Douglass continued to speak and worked tirelessly for the end of slavery and the right of newly freed Black Americans to vote.

Although he supported President Abraham Lincoln in the early years of the Civil War, Douglass fell into disagreement with the politician after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, which effectively ended the practice of slavery. Douglass was disappointed that Lincoln didn’t use the proclamation to grant formerly enslaved people the right to vote, particularly after they had fought bravely alongside soldiers for the Union army.

It is said, though, that Douglass and Lincoln later reconciled and, following Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, and the passage of the 13th amendment , 14th amendment , and 15th amendment to the U.S. Constitution (which, respectively, outlawed slavery, granted formerly enslaved people citizenship and equal protection under the law, and protected all citizens from racial discrimination in voting), Douglass was asked to speak at the dedication of the Emancipation Memorial in Washington, D.C.’s Lincoln Park in 1876.

Historians, in fact, suggest that Lincoln’s widow, Mary Todd Lincoln , bequeathed the late-president’s favorite walking stick to Douglass after that speech.

In the post-war Reconstruction era, Douglass served in many official positions in government, including as an ambassador to the Dominican Republic, thereby becoming the first Black man to hold high office. He also continued speaking and advocating for African American and women’s rights.

In the 1868 presidential election, he supported the candidacy of former Union general Ulysses S. Grant , who promised to take a hard line against white supremacist-led insurgencies in the post-war South. Grant notably also oversaw passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1871 , which was designed to suppress the growing Ku Klux Klan movement.

Frederick Douglass: Later Life and Death

In 1877, Douglass met with Thomas Auld , the man who once “owned” him, and the two reportedly reconciled.

Douglass’ wife Anna died in 1882, and he married white activist Helen Pitts in 1884.

In 1888, he became the first African American to receive a vote for President of the United States, during the Republican National Convention. Ultimately, though, Benjamin Harrison received the party nomination.

Douglass remained an active speaker, writer and activist until his death in 1895. He died after suffering a heart attack at home after arriving back from a meeting of the National Council of Women , a women’s rights group still in its infancy at the time, in Washington, D.C.

His life’s work still serves as an inspiration to those who seek equality and a more just society.

HISTORY Vault: Black History

Watch acclaimed Black History documentaries on HISTORY Vault.

Frederick Douglas, PBS.org . Frederick Douglas, National Parks Service, nps.gov . Frederick Douglas, 1818-1895, Documenting the South, University of North Carolina , docsouth.unc.edu . Frederick Douglass Quotes, brainyquote.com . “Reception Speech. At Finsbury Chapel, Moorfields, England, May 12, 1846.” USF.edu . “What to the slave is the 4th of July?” TeachingAmericanHistory.org . Graham, D.A. (2017). “Donald Trump’s Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” The Atlantic .

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Product Description

As a young man, he experienced the brutality of slavery firsthand. As an outspoken leader of the abolitionist movement, he became one of the most powerful voices in American history. Frederick Douglass inadvertently found his calling while giving an impromptu speech at an anti-slavery meeting in 1841. As a formerly enslaved man, he quickly became not only a persuasive speaker, but also a poignant symbol of freedom. His insightful and eloquent lectures and tireless efforts to educate the public about the realities of slavery significantly furthered the abolitionist cause. This inspiring BIOGRPAHY program chronicles Douglass's remarkable life, from his childhood in slavery to his crucial work on behalf of formerly enslaved people following the Civil War. Rare photographs and extensive interviews with leading historians offer a revealing portrait of this extraordinary man.

Product details

• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 2.61 ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ AAE-71929
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, Multiple Formats, Color
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 50 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ August 25, 2020
• Studio ‏ : ‎ A&E
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0007WFUMO
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• #5,627 in Documentary (Movies & TV)
• #6,480 in Special Interests (Movies & TV)

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TrendyDigests

Frederick Douglass: From Fugitive Slave to Fierce Abolitionist

Posted: May 20, 2024 | Last updated: May 20, 2024

Two years deep into the Civil War's carnage, Frederick Douglass' discontent with President Lincoln's hesitance on black military enlistment was palpable.

"We are striking the rebels with our soft white hand, when we should be striking them with the iron hand of the black man which we keep chained behind us," he asserted.

His fervor to harness the potential of African American soldiers as a crushing force against the Confederacy was thwarted by a stark inequality in the treatment of black troops.

White soldiers were paid more, promotions for black soldiers were rare, and protections afforded to white prisoners of war were denied to their black counterparts.

“I must expose wrongs and plead their cause,” Douglass proclaimed, undeterred in his pursuit of equity.

When the policy shifted, and black men could serve, Douglass threw himself into the task of recruitment, channeling his passion into action for the 54th & 55th Massachusetts Infantry.

Tragically, two of his own sons bore the scars of battle, with Lewis languishing in a hospital and Charles wrestling with disease.

Despite personal grief, Douglass sought an audience with Lincoln, a significant stride considering his prior status as a slave and "member of a despised race."

Lincoln's reception of Douglass, "I know who you are Mr. Douglass. Sit down. I am glad to see you," marked a moment of mutual recognition, although their robust conversation echoed a blend of agreement and dissent.

In a further entwining of destinies, Lincoln tasked Douglass with a covert operation to instigate a mass exodus of enslaved individuals.

Although the mission was aborted due to Lincoln's re-election, for a brief time, "the former slave from the Tuckahoe and the Indiana dirt farmer's son were making a revolution together."

Douglass' relationship with Lincoln was complex, one where Lincoln's initial reticence was supplanted by an acknowledgment of the war's crux: the millions enslaved.

Their final encounter, a poignant episode during Lincoln's second inauguration, was characterized by mutual respect, with Lincoln publicly hailing Douglass as "my friend Douglass," seeking his opinion on the inaugural address.

The assassination of Lincoln just a month later left Douglass mourning a presidency that, had it continued, might have ushered in vastly different realities for African Americans.

Reflecting on the dual nature of Lincoln and his own life, Douglass reconciled the disparate views of Lincoln as tardy and indifferent or as zealous and determined, understanding that both Lincoln and he contained multitudes and were men of their times, grappling with the immense challenge of a nation divided by slavery.

Relevant articles: - Confronting a President: Douglass and Lincoln , National Park Service (.gov) - Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass: Inside Their Complicated Relationship , History.com - Booker T. Washington, 1856 , Documenting the American South

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Frederick Douglass (1818-1895)

IMDbPro Starmeter See rank

Personal details

• 5′ 11½″ (1.82 m)
• Talbot County, Maryland, USA
• February 20 , 1895
• Washington, District of Columbia, USA (heart attack)
• Spouses Helen Pitts January 24, 1884 - February 20, 1895 (his death)
• 1 Biographical Movie
• 1 Print Biography
• 22 Portrayals

Did you know

• Trivia Born on a plantation into slavery to a black mother and a white father. The exact date of his birth is unknown; he chose to celebrate his birthday on February 14.
• When did Frederick Douglass die?
• How did Frederick Douglass die?
• Where did Frederick Douglass die?

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