(The following roles supplement the assignment explained in the article, "Teaching Unsung Heroes," in Rethinking Schools, Vol 15, #1.)
Frederick Douglass: I was born a slave. When I was about 16 years old, I was rented out to an overseer in Maryland by my "master". He beat me, but when he tried to do it again, I beat him and he never tried again.Later, I escaped slavery, wrote a book on my life as a slave, and became a well-known organizer against slavery. During the Civil War, I helped convince President Lincoln to allow Blacks to join the military and fight to preserve the Union. Some peopleb elieve that I was the most significant Black American in the 19th century.
Harriet Tubman: I was born a slave, but escaped. I'm most well-known for being a "conductor" on what was called the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad was not underground and it was not a railroad; it was the secret system of getting escaped slaves to freedom. And no one made more trips than I did. I traveled South 19 times to free over 300 souls, and never lost a "passenger." During the Civil War, I led missions behind enemy lines to free slaves and burn down plantations.
John Brown: People have called me crazy because I, a white man, gave up my life in the cause to free Black slaves. I fought in what was called "bloody Kansas" to make sure that Kansas did not enter the United States as a slave state. And it's true, I killed people there. But it was a just cause, and I took no pleasure in killing. I'm most famous for leading the attack on the U.S. arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia. In one sense my mission failed, because we were captured and I was executed. But I am convinced that my actions hastened the day of freedom for Black slaves.
Elaine Brown: I'm not a famous figure like Malcolm X or Martin Luther King, Jr. But I did my part. I was the first and only woman to lead the Black Panther Party for Self Defense. We were the most militantof the Black organizations in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Contrary to the stereotype, we did not advocate violence. We pushed for free breakfast programs for poor children, and free clinics for all who needed them. I was (and am) a Black revolutionary. Our slogan was "Power to the People " and we meant it. Check out my book, A Taste of Power.