Frederick Douglass was one of the most powerful voices of the antislavery movement, since his argument came from his own experience. His story is best told by him, and his autobiography is quite accessible. In it he describes the manner in which he became free from slavery and what education and literacy meant to him.

As editor of the North Star he wrote in support of abolition, and he was a powerful and popular speaker among those for whom the institution of slavery was an abomination. Two of his sons were members of the famous 54th Massachusetts Regiment, whose story was depicted in the movie Glory. Although he became with President Abraham Lincoln's slow movement towards emancipation, he welcomed that step when it came. He was welcomed by Lincoln in the White House following the president's second inaugural address in 1865.

Douglass Links

• PBS Biography of Frederick Douglass
• Douglass Editorial in the North Star
• Douglass Editorial on Colonization

Two Links to the Biography of Frederick Douglass Written by Himself

• Berkeley Digital Library
• University of Virginia