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One of the most "dangerous" men in American history - Keenan Norris

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In 1830, David Walker sewed a pamphlet into the lining of a coat. The volume was thin enough to be hidden, but its content was far from insubstantial. At the time, many members of the US government considered this pamphlet to be one of the most dangerous documents in American history. But what was this incendiary document? And who exactly was the man who wrote it? Keenan Norris investigates.

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David Walker was a major activist figure in his time. Walker's "Appeal" is a militant abolitionist manifesto that is universally understood within Black Studies as a formative text in the American abolition movement and in the consolidation of Pan-Africanist ideology. Yet Walker and his "Appeal" are little known outside academic circles today. What might be some reasons for Walker’s current-day obscurity?

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Meet The Creators

  • Educator Keenan Norris
  • Director Tomás Pichardo-Espaillat
  • Narrator Addison Anderson
  • Music Cem Misirlioglu
  • Sound Designer Cem Misirlioglu
  • Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
  • Senior Producer Anna Bechtol
  • Associate Producer Sazia Afrin
  • Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
  • Senior Editorial Producer Dan Kwartler
  • Script Editor Iseult Gillespie
  • Fact-Checker Charles Wallace

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