Becoming Benjamin Lay screening, Friday 1st May, 5:30pm, Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge
A new film, Becoming Benjamin Lay, will be screened on Friday 1 May at 5:30pm in the Runcie Room, Faculty of Divinity, West Road, Cambridge (CB3 9BS), with support from CenSAMM. Directed by Tony Buba and produced by Marcus Rediker, the 56-minute documentary explores the life of the militant and, until recently, largely overlooked eighteenth-century abolitionist Benjamin Lay.
The film examines Lay’s commitment to ending slavery at a time when few publicly opposed the practice, and the dramatic means he used to confront his contemporaries. It also explores how his dwarfism shaped his politics, why his story was largely forgotten, and why it is becoming increasingly important to many communities today. Dismissed by one historian of slavery as a 'mentally deranged … little hunchback', Lay is now being rediscovered as one of the eighteenth century’s most radical and uncompromising opponents of slavery.
The screening will be introduced by Marcus Rediker, author of The Fearless Benjamin Lay (2017), the book that helped bring renewed attention to Lay’s life and legacy. The book has since inspired a successful stage play, a graphic novel, and a children’s book. The event is free and open to all; no ticket is required.
Marcus Rediker is Distinguished Professor of Atlantic History at the University of Pittsburgh. His books include The Many-Headed Hydra (2000, with Peter Linebaugh), The Slave Ship (2007), The Fearless Benjamin Lay (2017), and Freedom Ship (2025). His work has won numerous awards and has been translated into twenty languages. Rediker also co-wrote the stage play The Return of Benjamin Lay with Naomi Wallace. He has produced two documentary films with Tony Buba: Ghosts of Amistad (2014) and Becoming Benjamin Lay.
