• Carter G Woodson

     
  • Feb 7, 1926: Carter G Woodson Launched 'Negro History Week', Zinn Education Project, 2021
     
    "This crusade is much more important than the anti-lynching movement,
    because there would be no lynching if it did not start in the schoolroom."
    — Carter G. Woodson
     
    Carter Woodson (1875-1950) was a journalist, an historian and the founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.
     
    The information from Zinn Education Project on Carter Woodson's efforts includes a lengthy essay, which provides insight on why Woodson chose February for the event. He hoped the presence of other events in February marking the birth of leaders notable in Black history like Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, would aid in his efforts. "He was asking the public to extend their study of Black history, not to create a new tradition. In doing so, he increased his chances for success." He was interested in celebrating more than these men, however, and he hoped this event would become an opportunity to celebrate "a great race" and that in classrooms it would lead to the study & scholarship of African American history throughout the year.
     
    Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History (zinnedproject.org) provides a thorough collection of resources for Black History Month, along with a number of other resources aimed at promoting and supporting "the teaching of people’s history in classrooms across the country."
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