AN INTERVIEW WITH FREDERICK DOUGLASS PT2

FREDERICK DOUGLASS 1818-1895 ORATOR..ABOLITIONIST..STATESMAN

Born into slavery in February of 1818 on the Eastern

shore of Maryland, his future was as bleak as any

slave before him, and he suffered great pain and indignity. But Frederick Douglass found a way out, and he led the way for others. As a child he learned to read and discovered the power of the written and spoken word. As a young adult, after escaping slavery, he used that power to fight for justice and equal opportunity.

QUESTION: How did you eventually escape from slavery? Did you devise a plan or scheme or did you just one day decide to go?

Mr. Douglass' reply: "I escaped from slavery on the 3rd of September of 1838, from the city of Baltimore. And I could not have done it without the very very strong support and guidance of Miss Anna Murray, who shortly after my escape agreed to become my wife. On the 14th of September of that same year (1838) we were married. So, it was not just one day I decided to go; we planned for several weeks. And in fact I might say that I had been planning an escape from slavery or at least I had the desire to escape from slavery from the moment I realized that I was a slave."

ASK FREDERICK DOUGLASS A QUESTION!

To honor his legacy, a life-like animation, set in an exact replica of Douglass' study in his Anacostia home was created for THEARC and is available to the community. Interactive performances are also possible where the animation will answer questions from the audience! More than two hours of Douglass' famous speeches are recorded in varying lengths and complexity and programmed with coordinated body movements. The end result is dramatic and awe inspiring!


Come see Frederick Douglass answer your questions this week at THEARC for Black History Month! Performances are Tuesday and Wednesday and are open to the public.

For more information please email info@thearcdc.org or call 202-4-THEARC or 202-484-3272.

WHY IS THEARC NEEDED?

Shockingly, the U.S. Census Bureau 2005 American Community Survey shows that our nation’s capital has the highest rate of childhood poverty of any jurisdiction in the United States. Three out of ten children in Washington, DC live at or below the poverty line—.

WHAT IS THEARC?

Ten non profit partners at THEARC have come together under one roof to help children.
Since its opening in 2005, Town Hall Education, Arts and Recreation Campus-THEARC- has become a national prototype combining social, cultural and health services. It is a $27 million 110,000 square foot center on 16.5 acres of land in Southeast Washington, DC. THEARC provides a daily safe haven for the children it serves, with a wide range of arts, educational, recreational, health programs and services. In addition there is a 365-seat theatre (the only theatre east of the Anacostia River) a regulation size gymnasium, computer lab, art gallery, state-of-the-art music and dance studios.

Will you contribute to help each charity fulfill their missions? Just click on the donate button! For more information about THEARC please go to our website http://www.thearcdc.org or you may call 1-202-4-THEARC (1-202-484-3272).

Selected for the 2008-2009 Catalogue for Philanthropy
“One of the best small charities in the greater Washington region”