7 episodes
The Agitators: The Story of Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass PRX
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- History
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5.0 • 43 Ratings
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The Agitators tells of the enduring but tempestuous friendship of Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass. Great allies? Yes. And at times, great adversaries. Young abolitionists when they met in Rochester, New York in the 1840s, they were full of hope and a common purpose. As they grew to become the cultural icons we know today, their movements collided and their friendship was severely tested. Follow these brilliant, flawed, and rebellious activists with host Ashley C. Ford. Their message still matters.
This six-part podcast is based on the play The Agitators; playwright Mat Smart used historical documents to imagine Susan and Frederick’s conversations. The Agitators is brought to listeners by the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission, the National Park Service, and PRX.
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Episode 1. Beginnings: 1849 and 1861
When Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony met in the late 1840s, he was one of the most well-known people in the United States and she was an unknown schoolteacher who had just quit her job because of unequal pay. Not long after, Frederick recruited Susan to be a lecturer with him in the Anti-Slavery Society and their friendship deepened.
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Episode 2. from Bondage to Freedom: 1861
From facing an angry mob to speak out against slavery to waiting for Harriet Tubman to arrive with African-Americans escaping slavery, this episode brings to life Frederick and Susan’s agitations during the Civil War.
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Episode 3. Reconstruction: 1867 and 1869
In the years after the Civil War, Frederick and Susan fight to make the United States a country for all, where everyone can vote. What gets in the way of this dream? Will their friendship survive betrayal?
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Episode 5. Infinite Light: 1883 and 1888
Frederick Douglass dreamed of a day “where even the constancy of hate breaks down and where the clouds of pride, passion, and selfishness vanish before the brightness of infinite light.” In this episode, as Frederick’s hopes are sidetracked by personal loss, Susan attempts to help him find his way back.
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Episode 6. “Fight for my rights, Aunt Susan”: 1894 and 1895
Susan and Frederick, well into their 70s, confront one another like prizefighters who don’t know when to quit. Will they finally see eye-to-eye on not only the past, but on how to agitate for a better future?
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Trailer: The Agitators, an adaptation of the play by Mat Smart
Host Ashley C. Ford introduces The Agitators, a six-part play-turned-podcast coming Nov. 18, 2020. We’re joined by the team from the onstage production: Actors Cedric Mays (Frederick Douglass) and Madeleine Lambert (Susan B. Anthony), Director Logan Vaughn, and Composer Juliette Jones of Rootstock Republic.
Customer Reviews
An engaging way to learn the real life struggles of advocacy
I’m not sure how I stumbled upon this podcast, but I’m glad I did. Through these dramatic vignettes we reach below the surface of the history of Emancipation, the 14th Amendment and the struggle for woman’s suffrage to engage with real people wrestling with real oppositions and some of the ethical conundrums of tactics, as well as the personal strains and difficulties of maintaining friendships. The settings range from living rooms to house ruins to baseball games to the halls of the White House.
History does not “just happen”, but imperfect people agitate, engage and disengage as they seek to live their personal lives while swimming in the currents of social change.
Among other things I now want to visit the historic sites of Frederick Douglass, Susan B Anthony and Ida B Wells.
Well done!
History storytelling
I look for different ways to intake history and this storytelling thru a play of sorts is excellent. I can follow the story and get layers of the story. Not just facts but meaning and impact. Great idea.
Excellent!
I enjoy d traveling with Susan and Frederick around some of my old grounds. More importantly you did an excellent job communicating their story. Thank you!