How Frederick Douglass’ Comedic Delivery Helped Deliver Us From Slavery

The Maryland-born activist was a fiery abolitionist—but he was also a humorist poking fun at planters’ revolting behavior to fuel the revolt against slavery.

Aug 18, 2026

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Touring across 19th-century Europe and the United States, the legendary author and orator Frederick Douglass drafted jokes to draft audiences into the roiling war against slavery. A revolutionary entertainer, Douglass made his audiences laugh until their sides hurt so that they would side with the moral crusade for abolitionism.

In his…

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A guest post by

Aaron Ross Coleman

Writer and journalist published in The New York Times, GQ, The Nation, BuzzFeed, The Intercept, CNBC, and elsewhere. Subscribe to my new home, Freedom Studies, where I write about abolition, economic democracy, and emancipation.