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Annual Easton Frederick Douglass Day
September 23, 2023 @ 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Parade -10am
The Frederick Douglass Honor Society announces the return of their annual Frederick Douglass Day Parade. Families are encouraged to attend and cheer on our Easton High School and Easton Middle School Bands, dancer groups, dignitaries, local organizations, sponsors, and event participants while enjoying the parade, welcome ceremony, book signings, children’s village, a variety of food options, live entertainment, a Douglass lecture, Frederick Douglass readings, artifacts, and more. The parade can be viewed from sidewalks and Thompson Park. Stepping off at Easton Elementary School at Glenwood Avenue, the parade route turns left onto Washington Street, and ends at the Talbot County Court House.
Welcome Ceremony – 10:30am
Mistress of Ceremonies Autumn Redman
Invocation by The Reverend Keith Beckett, New St. John’s United Methodist Church
Presentation of Colors by Easton High School NJROTC
Pledge of Allegiance led by BAAM (Building African American Minds)
Music Provided by Easton Middle School, Easton High School,
and Hip Hop Artist Baba Bomani
Frederick Douglass Recitation by Devon Beck, Facilitator of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Talbot County Board of Education
Speakers include: Brenda Wooden, President, Frederick Douglass Honor Society,
Annie Mewborn, Assistant Principal – Easton Elementary School,
Mayor Megan J. McLennan Cook, Town of Easton
Keasha Haythe, Talbot County Council
Dana Newman, Director, Talbot County Free Library,
Sharon Pepukayi, Ed.D., Superintendent of Talbot County Public Schools.
Children’s Village – 11am to 3pm
Children will receive a free Frederick Douglass in His Own Words coloring book when visiting the Children’s Village. The Village is located on the front lawn of the Talbot County Free Library and features a variety of hands-on fun and visual experiences. Children and family members will be inspired to explore history, activate their creativity, and reap rewards (prizes) for learning about Frederick Douglass. The Village experiences include free games, balloons, bubbles, coloring, face painting, stickers, and a photograph opportunity next to Frederick Douglass. Children always learn with ease when they are having fun.
TCFL Frederick Douglass Room – 11am to 3pm
Featuring Frederick Douglass artifacts, Frederick Douglass paintings by artist and teacher Laura Era, owner of Troika Gallery, readings by Shauna Beulah, Frederick Douglass video, and Douglass panels by Celeste-Marie Bernier. (Talbot County Free Library)
Marketplace – 11am to 3pm
The open-air Marketplace offers regional foods, Bay favorites, and desserts bustling with flavor, presented by a variety of vendors along with arts, crafts, and jewelry. Meet local organizational leaders and learn about our community and volunteer opportunities. (Tenting and chairs provided for diners.)
Book Signing – 11:45am
Book signing with Photographer/Author Jeff McGuiness, Bear Me into Freedom – The Talbot County of Frederick Douglass at Vintage Books and Fine Art, 4 N Washington Street
Book signing with Dr. Robert Levine will sign copies of his book – location and time to be determined – The Failed Promise – Reconstruction, Douglass and the Impeachment of Andrew Johnson.
Geocaching – 12 Noon
Pickup your passport with map and instructions and explore the new Frederick Douglass Geocaching Trail created by Autumn Redman and Girl Scouts #1308. Learn about his life in Talbot County and collect a commemorative coin and photograph at the end of the trail. (Talbot County Free Library)
Keynote Speaker – 1 pm
Dr. Derrick R. Spires is a John and Patricia Cochran Scholar of Inclusive Excellence and Associate Professor of English at the University of Delaware, where he specializes in early Black print, culture, citizenship, and African American intellectual history. This year he is serving as a Just Transformations Mellon Colored Conventions Project Senior Research Fellow at Penn State’s Center for Black Digital Research. His first book, The Practice of Citizenship: Black Politics and Print Culture in the Early United States (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2019), traces how Black writers articulated an expansive, practice-based theory of citizenship through a robust print culture, including Black newspapers, the Colored Conventions movement, and other ephemera.
