Peru, Nebraska– Peru State College will host a Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commemoration Program on February 1, 2018, at 5:30 p.m. in the Black Box Theatre of the Jindra Fine Arts building.
Hosted by Black Student Union, Phi Alpha Theta and the Mayhew Cabin, the program will include dramatic readings of Douglass’ speeches and a Douglass impersonator.
Frederick Douglass, an African-American social reformer, escaped slavery to become a well-known abolitionist in Massachusetts and New York in the mid-1800s. Douglass is known for his intelligent writings and well-crafted speeches. During the 1872 election, Douglass also became the first African-American nominated for Vice President of the United States with Victoria Woodhull as his Presidential nominee.
Douglass has written three autobiographies: A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, published in 1845; My Bondage and My Freedom, published in 1855; and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass, published in 1881. All three of his autobiographies detail his life as a slave and free man as he enters into American politics and civil rights movements to abolish slavery.
This program will be the first event of many in February as part of Peru State’s celebration of Diversity and Inclusion Awareness Month. For more information on the events, contact Dr. Sara Crook at scrook@peru.edu, or Kristi Nies at knies@peru.edu.
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