Mis-Education of the Negro
New to Penguin Classics, one of the most influential works of Black social criticism ever written
The Mis-education of the Negro is today considered one of the most influential works by 'the father of Black history', Carter G. Woodson, setting the table for generations of antiracist teaching pioneered by Black educators.
As both student and teacher, Woodson witnessed the distortions of Black life in the history and literature taught in schools and universities. He believed that there was a relationship between these distortions and the violence that circumscribed Black life in the material world, declaring, "There would be no lynching it if did not start in the schoolroom." Mixing social criticism, history, theory and memoir, The Mis-education of the Negro argues cogently that students, teachers, and leaders needed to be educated in a manner that was accountable to Black experiences and lived realities, both past and present.
Carter G. Woodson (Author)
Carter Godwin Woodson (1875 - 1950) was an American historian and journalist. His pioneering work in African-American history helped establish the field as an academic discipline, and his founding of 'Negro History Week' eventually led to Black History Month. He is now commonly referred to as the 'father of Black history'.
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (External Editor)
Henry Louis Gates, Jr is Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and founding director of the Hutchins Centre for African and African American Research at Harvard University.