Three professors in the College of Arts and Sciences provide insight on Frederick Douglass’ life and attest to his influence in the film “Becoming Frederick Douglass,” which premiered on PBS Oct. 11.

Credit: Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division

Gerard Aching, the W.E.B. Dubois Professor in the Humanities, Edward Baptist, professor of history, and Derrick R. Spires, associate professor of literatures in English add their voices to a chorus of experts telling the story of how a man born into slavery around 1818 became an advocate for freedom for African Americans.

“Becoming Frederick Douglass” is produced and directed by Stanley Nelson and Nicole London and features Wendell Pierce as the voice of Douglass, reading from his writings and speeches.

“It’s hard to pinpoint a moment in Douglass’s life when he wasn’t a danger, especially to structures of white supremacy and enslavement,” Spires said in the film. “You want a handbook of how to be successful in this world? You want a handbook on how to advocate for Black rights, for justice; how to navigate really thorny moral, spiritual, political, legal issues? Read Douglass’ life. He walks you through how he does that.”

Read the full story on the College of Arts and Sciences website.