UIC Douglass Day 2026

This event will honor Frederick Douglass on Douglass Day 2026 — a day of love and collective action for Black history.

Douglass Day is an annual program that marks the birth of Frederick Douglass. UIC participants will join others across the country on Friday, Feb. 13, to help create new, freely available resources for learning about Black history. The program takes place in the Richard J. Daley Library in the IDEA Commons, Classroom A, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Drop in at any time and stay for as long as your schedule allows. Lunch will be provided. You’re invited to participate in this important work and to celebrate Black History Month.

Come and bring a friend! Register for the event.

For more information, contact Briana Hanny, blst@uic.edu.

Co-sponsored by UIC Black Studies, Sociology, University Library, History and Political Science.

What is a transcribe-a-thon?
Transcribe-a-thons are events in which people gather together to work side-by-side on a crowdsourcing transcription project. We feature a different project each year. We always try to have food, music and a fun time. Want to hold a transcribe-a-thon? Our program team prepares a set of plans and resources each year to help you bring Douglass Day to your group, school or community. Free and open to all.

What are we going to transcribe this year?
This year we are going to be transcribing a vast new collection of records on the Colored Conventions movement. Our transcriptions will range across dozens of states and stretch from the start of the movement in 1830 through the turn of the 20th century.

This new collection shows the role of Black communities in organizing and agitating across the century. Together we can transcribe these records and make them more accessible. Help us show the ways that the Colored Conventions helped to imagine, pass and protect all of our 14th Amendment Rights, including birthright citizenship, due process and equal protection under the law for all persons.

Want a preview? Browse the site of the Colored Conventions – Digital Records.

Filming and photography notice
Photographers and/or news media may be present at this event. By participating and being present during the event, you give the University of Illinois Chicago the right to use photographs or video/audio recordings taken of you during the event for educational or promotional purposes and for sharing with external news media. If you do not wish to appear in photographs or be recorded during the event, please inform an event administrator.