SUNY Fredonia will participate in a nationwide program honoring the legacy of 19th century author, orator and anti-slavery activist Frederick Douglass.
"Douglass Day," on Friday, Feb. 13, from noon to 3 p.m., is a celebration as well as a collective contribution to the preservation of Black American history, as thousands of people around the country gather to transcribe and create freely available resources for learning about Black history.
The campus will participate with an in-person transcription event in Williams Center Room S204 that follows along with the Douglass Day livestream.
The SUNY Fredonia event, which is free and open to the public, is hosted by the Department of English and Reed Library, with support from the Ethnic and Gender Studies Program, the Carnahan Jackson Fund for the Humanities through the Fredonia College Foundation, and the Office of the Provost.
Participants are encouraged to bring laptops or devices for the transcription work, but there will also be plenty of laptops available (on loan from Reed Library), as well as faculty, Reed librarians and student volunteers to provide assistance.
No prior experience with transcription work is necessary for anyone interested in participating in this digitization project, and participants are welcome to stop in and participate at any time during the program. Refreshments will be served, including a special birthday cake in honor of Douglass.
More information can be found on the Douglass Day website, or via email to Emily VanDette or Scott Richmond.
