Significance Of Frederick Douglass From Slave To Abolitionist

After the Civil War erupted in 1861, Douglass proposed the formation of a Black Army. He strongly believed that black men needed to be involved in the fight that would grant them freedom from slavery. Douglass served as a recruiter in 1863, speaking about the importance of the contribution of the black men in the Civil War: “he who would be freed themselves must strike the blow.” He gave the example by recruiting his own two sons. Because of his involvement 200 000 black soldiers an sailors participated in the war. The documentary, From Slave to Abolitionist, evaluates the contribution of Frederick Douglass in the abolition of slavery and the American Civil War. With the incorporation of direct quotes from Douglass' biography and speeches,

At the age of six, Douglass began his life as a bought slave. His slave owner was most likely his father and his mother died when he was about ten but other than that he lived a relatively normal life for a slave at that time. That is, until he saw his aunt being brutally whipped by his slave owner. This is where Douglass's strong drive to end slavery ensued. Being treated so inhumanly sent Douglass to seek freedom. One of the many ways he did that was through intellect. When Douglass was taught how to read and write it must have seemed like the light at the end of the tunnel, hope. After learning that new skill he sought to better himself, and his fellow African Americans. The documentary did fail to list several important details, such as the fact that after learning how to read Douglass taught many other enslaved blacks how to read during a weekly church service. In fact he had quite a large number of people attending the services, but the average was about forty. The large number of attendees proved how slaves valued education. Education also gave Douglass the courage to fight back against his slave

“Anna Murray, was a ...very quiet... African American woman. It is quite obvious why Douglass was attracted to her, she gave him the support he was looking for, and she encouraged him in his efforts to acquire his freedom.” Not only this, but later in the film it states that Murray gave money to Douglass after he hatched a plan of escape. The film review shows how their relationship was useful, not only because of their attraction, but also because they aided each other in their pursuit of absolute freedom for African Americans. One thing the film didn't tell us was that Douglass had made two other escape attempts before and in only the last one did he succeed with the help of Anna Murray. Douglass' character is still very admirable, he is a brave, intelligent man who stands up on defense of justice and freedom—America's founding