A history professor explains why he requires students to read the autobiography of Frederick Douglass, "The Narrative of Frederick Douglass." He finds students, both African American and white, react powerfully to the book (many choose to write a paper on Douglass) and feels the book touches upon nearly all the overarching problems of…

Describes the black intellectual tradition behind the concept of African American studies, which is descriptive, corrective, and prescriptive. Explains that black studies has always been a critical body of scholarship seeking over time to dismantle powerful racist intellectual categories and white supremacy itself. Describes the history and…

Examines possibilities for the future of black studies, highlighting Detroit as a focal point for historical analysis. Discusses the development of the Department of Africana Studies at Wayne State University, examining historical events that directly relate to discussions about the future of black studies. Investigates why black studies is so…

Reviews selected literature about Black women within the framework of Black history in the United States. Includes recent books and articles as well as older classic titles. Uses two approaches: thematic and chronological. (Author/CK)

Instant mass popularity of "Time on the Cross" as a technology-based re-evaluation of the slave system is traced; the furor it created in history and economics circles is described; and specific challenges which led to its demise as a credible document are related. (AV)

Analyzes how Black women fought for and won basic citizenship rights in the United States. Cites examples which show how the struggle of Black women helped to transform the U.S. Constitution. (Author/BSR)

Chronicles the professional life of Carter G. Woodson, the person often credited with the rise of Afro-American history. Describes how white philanthropic organizations aided Woodson in his efforts to educate black citizens and establish black history as a legitimate field of study in U.S. colleges and universities. (JDH)

As its core, the history of America is a history of race. Adding courses in Black studies to the regular curriculum is not enough to redress the White bias that permeates our thinking and our approach to teaching intellectual disciplines. Rather, we must reorder our one-sided approach to history. (GC)

Although the Underground Railroad has been an integral part of U.S. history and folklore for well over 150 years, the recent past has seen an increased public interest in the identification of historic sites associated with the experiences of fugitive slaves. This booklet is part of a National Park Service initiative to design research methods…

The history of the lives of non-white peoples in the United States largely has been neglected although the Spanish bureaucrats kept meticulous records of the Spanish Mission period in Florida. These records represent an important source for the cultural history of these groups and offer new perspectives on the tri-racial nature of frontier…

Affirmative action programs are under attack in the 1970's. The country seems to be forgetting that the legacy of slavery is still with us. To act justly in the present and future, the past must be recalled because in large measure it shaped present conditions. Selected events in the history of black people in America, and certain key factors that…

Assesses the historiography of African-American education in terms of its appraisal of the Black struggle for education and its ability to contribute to the emancipation of Black. Evaluates the topical and thematic content and the dominant interpretive stances of three periods: (1) 1890s to the Great Depression, (2) 1930s-1960s, and (3) the late…

Discusses the history of the black baseball experience. Describes formation of the black leagues, the players, and the discrimination they faced in baseball in the United States. Explains how the early black players introduced new aspects to the major leagues that transformed and improved the quality of play. (DK)

Provides a review of the literature on African American history and education, discussing four historical phases of scholarship and covering topics such as scholarship on African American women, segregation in public education, and criticism of "Brown v. Board of Education." Includes an extensive bibliography. (CMK)

Samples and reviews a broad cross-section of United States survey textbooks available to college instructors in terms of their treatment of slavery. Reports on how they are doing collectively to represent a much revised historical topic, how they compare with one another, and which among them is most useful. (DSK)