It is a collective day of love & action for Black history!
Douglass Day is an annual program that marks the birth of Frederick Douglass. Each year, we gather thousands of people to help create new & freely available resources for learning about Black history. We frequently focus on important Black women’s archives, such as Anna Julia Cooper (2020), Mary Church Terrell (2021), and plenty more to come in future years. Learn more about the history of Douglass Day.
Contact
Professor Emily Todd,
English Department
etodd@westfield.ma.edu
413-572-8693
Helpful Links
Douglass Day YouTube & Livestream
Colored Conventions Transcribe-a-thon
How do I . . .
become involved in Douglass Day?
What's in store this year?
We are hosting a Douglass Day celebration on Monday, February 14, from noon to 3 p.m. The event will take place both in person in the Ely Library instruction room on the mezzanine floor and on Zoom. You are welcome to pop in at any time during the three hours. This year the celebration will feature a transcribe-a-thon of records from the Colored Conventions and will focus especially on Black women’s participation in “the nineteenth century’s longest campaign for Civil Rights.” One of the goals this year is to make women's participation in the Colored Conventions more visible -- to find their names in these historical records!
Zoom Room: https://westfield-ma.zoom.us/j/94630012524
During the event, we will share a livestream of speakers and performers from noon to 12:30, 1 to 1:30, and 2:45 to 3:00. We will also be available -- both on Zoom and in the Library -- to answer any questions you might have about transcribing documents on the Zooniverse platform. We encourage participants to share their discoveries on social media using #DouglassDay.
Also, anyone who likes to bake should feel welcome to participate in the Great Douglass Day Bakeoff. Bake a birthday cake in honor of Frederick Douglass and post it on social media using #GreatDouglassDayBakeoff; judging will take place at 2:45 p.m.
And don't forget to include us in your social media posts as well!
Twitter: @ElyLibraryWSU
Instagram: @wsu_elylibrary
The event is co-sponsored by the Ely Library, English Department, Ethnic and Gender Studies Department, History Department, and Black Student Union.