Dispatches from Home – Frederick Douglass.

The first words from his book and the last – “I was born in Tuckahoe, near Hillsborough, and about twelve miles from Easton, in Talbot County, Maryland. I have no knowledge of my age. – From that time until now, I have been engaged in pleading the cause of my brethren, with what success, and with what devotion, I leave those acquainted with my labors to decide.”

Thus begins and ends Douglass’s book, which relates his life of bondage, his escape, and his self-made public career. A recurring theme in the book is this: to Douglass, slavery meant bondage of the mind as much as the body. I found the recounting of his meetings with his former masters most poignant.

Would you please put it on your reading list?

Later Book-Loving Gaters!

(Originally posted August 11, 2021)