大象传媒

In 1846, the citizens of Bridgwater in the south west of England wrote to the citizens of Bridgewater in America - exhorting their namesake to take a stand against slavery and the 'degradation of bondage'. Signed by around 12 hundred men, women and children - most of the town - the petition was inspired by a visit and talk by the famous abolitionist and former slave from Maryland, Frederick Douglas.

Now, 174 years later, these old letters have inspired a new unity between the two towns - as activists coordinate over Black Lives Matter protests.

It all started when Stephen Rogan of the Bridgwater Historical Commission in the US came across the letters as he was putting old documents online