Giving Voice to the Abolitionists: Selected Readings from the BPL’s Anti-Slavery Collection

Do letters written more than 150 years ago in opposition to the institution of slavery in the United States still matter today? Can the words of the abolitionists help us to understand the foundations of social and political movements in our time?

On December 9th, the Associates of the Boston Public Library is pleased to host the premiere of Giving Voice to the Abolitionists: Selected Readings from the BPL’s Anti-Slavery Collection. This production draws upon a few of the thousands of letters in Boston Public Library's extensive collection of correspondence, documents, and other original material relating to the abolitionist cause. The Associates is proud to have supported the conservation, cataloging, and digitization of many items from this collection.

Giving Voice to the Abolitionists features five remarkable young actors from the Boston Arts Academy, sharing letters originally written by William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Lydia Maria Child, and Amos Augustus Phelps. Wellesley College Assistant Professor Kellie Carter Jackson introduces the readings and argues for the letters critical relevance today. The video was produced in collaboration with Artists for Humanity.

This production is part of the Pierce Performance Series. The series seeks to increase public awareness of the Boston Public Library's Special Collections through free performances and lectures and is made possible by the generosity of the Harold Whitworth Pierce Charitable Trust.

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