Frederick Douglass Impact On Education

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Frederick Douglas is one of the most well-known African Americans leaders whose journey to success was nothing short of a miracle. Frederick Douglas was born in 1818 many years before slavery was finally abolished (Douglass,13). Frederick Douglass escaped slavery when he was just twenty years old and used his new found freedom to help fight for other oppressed people. Douglas became an abolitionist and advocated for women's rights and also fought very hard to make sure that African Americans would have access to education. Frederick Douglass wanted to change the United States of America into a place where all people could live freely regardless of their backgrounds and he noted that education was one of the most powerful tools to do such a thing. In one of Frederick Douglas narratives named, “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas” Douglas writes about how important education was for him and how most oppressors use knowledge as a way to keep other people oppressed. …show more content…

Mrs. Auld took the time to teach Douglass how to read and write before having her husband, Mr.Auld force her to stop. Mr. Auld’s reasoning for why he didn’t want Douglass to learn how to read resonated with Douglass and caused him to realize the importance of education. Mr. Auld told Mrs. Auld that “ Learning would spoil the best nigger in the world. ...If you teach that nigger how to read there would be no keeping him. It would forever unfit him to be a slave” (Douglass,14). After hearing Mr.Auld explain why he should not be allowed to read and write, Douglass says he understood what gave, “...The white man the power to enslave the black man”(Douglass,14) which was

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