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Symposium Celebrating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Frederick Douglass Papers, October 26-27, 2023

On October 26 and 27, 2023, an international gathering of scholars will be held at the Africana Studies suite in the historic Madam C.J. Walker Legacy Center to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the Frederick Douglass Papers. Fourteen scholars from a wide range of disciplines in a series of six sessions will present original papers assessing the accomplishments of the Douglass Papers in documenting his long public career. These sessions will be open to the public without charge and broadcast via a webinar for those who cannot attend in person. See the full schedule below. Instructions for accessing the webinar will be found here in upcoming weeks. 

On Thursday evening, October 27th, in conjunction with the symposium, a performance by actors of the IUPUI Africana Repertory Theater of “The Rise and Deconstruction of Reconstruction: A One-Act Play,” by Indiana playwright Vernon Williams, will be staged at the Lilly Auditorium in the IUPUI Main Library. This play explores the complex landscape of the United States Reconstruction era and racial equity today. The play is set in 1878, less than twenty years after “Jubilee,” when some of the most progressive Black minds of the day have convened at a fictional meeting to assess emancipation’s aftermath and the recent collapse of the Reconstruction program. The historical narrative of this “experiment” and ultimate betrayal of freedom will serve as the backdrop for this one-act production, as prominent figures from the time take the stage to convey their personal experiences and those of their contemporaries.

This event is jointly sponsored by the IUPUI Arts and Humanities Institute, Indiana Humanities, the IUPUI Division of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, the Institute for American Thought, and the School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI.

 

To register for the Symposium go to the following link provided by IUPUI: REGISTER

If you have questions, contact Jack Kaufman-McKivigan at 317-263-5834.

 

Symposium Schedule

Day One (Thursday, October 26, 2023) Madam Walker Legacy Center617 Indiana Ave, Indianapoliis

9:30-10:15    Keynote Address: Celeste-Marie Bernier, University of Edinburgh

10:30-12:15  Scholarly Roundtable One: Douglass’s Autobiographical Writings

  •  Robert S. Levine, University of Maryland: "Authorial Intention and Textual Fluidity in Douglass's Autobiographies."
  •  Xiomara Santamarina, University of Michigan:  “Political Economy in Frederick Douglass’s Autobiographies”
  •  Autumn Womack, Princeton University: "Frederick Douglass: Biography of an Autobiography”

12:15-1:45    Lunch Break

2:00-3:45       Scholarly Roundtable Two: Douglass’s Correspondence

  •  Ezra Greenspan, Southern Methodist University: "Exploring the Correspondence of Frederick Douglass in the Vault of the Frederick Douglass Papers, IUPUI." 
  •  Hannah-Rose Murray, University of Edinburgh: “A Sunbeam in the Darkness of the Hour”: Frederick Douglass Transatlantic Correspondence.”
  •  L. Diane Barnes, Edmentum: “Annotating Douglass: Value-Added Scholarship in the Correspondence Series.”

 

7:00-8:00     Evening Reception:  IUPUI University Library Lower Level Lobby

8:00-9:00     Performance: “The Rise and Destruction of Reconstruction: A One-Act Play” by Vernon A. Williams: IUPUI University Library Lilly Auditorium

Day Two (Friday, October 27, 2023) Madam Walker Legacy Center

9:30-11:15    Scholarly Roundtable Three: Douglass’s Speeches

  • Glen McClish, San Diego State University: "The Rhetorical Achievement of Frederick Douglass’s ‘Lessons of the Hour.' " 
  • Julie Husband, University of Northern Iowa: "’Lessons of the Hour’ in the Capital of the Confederacy” 
  • Kirt Wilson, Penn State University: “Political Strategy and Personal Survival in Frederick Douglass’s Post-Reconstruction America.”

11:30-12:30     Plenary Session on John W. Blassingame, Editor

  •     Lawrence Powell, Tulane University
  •     John R. McKivigan, IUPUI
  •     Peter P. Hinks, Independent Scholar

12:30-1:30    Lunch  Break

1:45-3:30      Scholarly Roundtable Four: Douglass’s Journalism

  •  John R. McKivigan, IUPUI: “’By Frederick Douglass’: African American Freelance Journalist.”
  •  Ben Fagan, Auburn University: “Frederick Douglass’ Paper and the Project of Black Leadership.”
  •  Kathleen Diffley, University of Iowa: "Anecdotal Evidence: Flash Fictions in the New (National) Era?"

3:30-4:00     Concluding Plenary Session: Contribution of the Douglass Papers to Frederick Douglass Scholarship

  •   Moderator: John R. McKivigan, IUPUI              

 

 

New Release: Journalism and Other Writings, Volume 1

The first volume of the Journalism and Other Writings Series was published by Yale University Press in late 2021. Launching the fourth series of The Frederick Douglass Papers, designed to introduce readers to the broadest range of Frederick Douglass’s writing, this volume contains sixty-seven pieces by Douglass, including articles written for the North American Review and the New York Independent, as well as unpublished poems, book transcriptions, and travel diaries. Spanning from the 1840s to the 1890s, the documents reproduced in this volume demonstrate how Douglass’s writing evolved over the five decades of his public life. Where his writing for publication was concerned mostly with antislavery advocacy, his unpublished works give readers a glimpse into his religious and personal reflections. The writings are organized chronologically and accompanied by annotations offering biographical information as well as explanations of events mentioned and literary or historical allusions.

Coming Soon: Correspondence, Volume 3

The third volume of the Correspondence Series is now in press and will be published in 2022. This volume reproduces selected correspondence to and from Douglass from the years 1866 to 1880. It produces letters discussing the crucial issues of the Reconstruction Era; Douglass’s career as editor of the Washington (D.C.) New National Era, president of the Freedmen’s Savings Bank, marshal of the District of Columbia, and his active involvement in not just politics but reform causes such as women’s rights. The texts of these letters are accompanied by detailed annotation making Douglass life and times accessible to modern readers.