The Miseducation Of The Negro: A Reflection On 5 Thoughts Still Relevant Today

September 8th, 2011 - By TheEditor

by Alexander Cain

The book The Mis-education of the Negro was originally written as a dissertation by author Carter Godwin Woodson who wanted to investigate how efficient the current education structure was for African-Americans. Despite being written in 1933, some of the struggles facing African-Americans mentioned in the book still hold true today: African-Americans have the highest unemployment and poverty level percentages of all ethnic groups; African-Americans show the lowest percentages of being business owners, and despite facing lower barriers to college entry than in 1933 African-Americans still show the lowest college admittance and graduation rates of all ethnic groups. As Carter Woodson explains in the book there are a few misconceptions about the education of African-Americans that need to be corrected in order for blacks to thrive and be successful.

Education of any people should begin with the people themselves
As President Obama continues his term as the first black president in United States history, the documentation of African-Americans in history books remains insignificant at best. During 1933 when the book was written, African-Americans were only acknowledged as a supplement to the hard work and sacrifices of white Americans who helped to shape our country. This fact still remains African-Americans aren’t intertwined in the history of the U.S.. They are acknowledged as a supplement to the United States and aren’t given the same intellectual examination as White Americas. As Woodson discusses throughout the book, every ethnic group brought their own strengths and characteristics, which helped the United States propel itself to its superpower status. Woodson cites that African-Americans will never be able to build upon their strengths if they aren’t made aware of it through education and will be always a step behind as they react to confirm to the styles and strengths of their white counterparts.

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  • Berdell

    My beloved mother had a first edition copy and my sister and I were required to read and study it. He was such a visionary and we should go over this with our children and grands. People know your history.

  • Dee

    There needs to be parents giving birth to children that are doing it for more than a CHECK!! There needs to be care and concern, morals taught and a desire to raise these kids for the good and furtherance of Our Country!! Then we will see CHANGE! The government wants dumb people that rely on the government for existence that way they have CONTROL; including Obama!!

    • Traceu

      How often does this really happen? With welfare reform and budget cuts everywhere that check is starting to be worth less than the paper t is printed on.

  • CriticXtreme

    Good post but how many black folks can put down a cell to read and appreciate it. The Miseducation continues. Most Ninjas would take advice from the streets before a person whose degreed. Tom Joyner used to do a very good thing on his radio show. Black folks are so misinformed that it insane and every year, the race gets dumbed down even more to right back being slaves.

  • lively09

    I've read this book several times, and always telling people to read it. This book is real relevant to what is going on today. Real change happens at the state level, but people are so misinformed about how politics work. A president of the United States does things on a United States level, so he cannot solve our problems. We have to use our education to uplift our communities to get ahead, but that has been forgotten. I see Korean businesses going up all around my area, and they are helping each other. There is only a handful of black businesses, and I can count them on one hand that resides in my area. We have to do better, and wakeup.

  • http://www.msstonejewlry.com Champagne

    This article is so true, we have to start somewhere and stand up. Start patronizing our businesses and start treating each other with respect and try liking each other that hating when we don't know each other. I'm 56 years old and when I was growing up we did have respect for each other and concerns. We have detached ourselves from compasion for each other. What a sad situation we are in.

  • nikki

    This is extremely saddening and breaks my heart. I am definitely mis-educated and didnt even know it especially what Woodson stated about not seeing the relevance to STEM or even valuing our own businesses :(

  • Steelcitychick

    Wow…great post.. I bet I’ll be the only one giving an oppinion…none the less…I under stand where this is going, but I must say…though these poilical climents where given to us from the onset. Their is a time when we as people need to take a stand, not only for us as individuals, but as a group, and take a stand….but we are incapable of doing that! Since the 50′s and 60′s we’ve lost that feeling of unity.
    Some blacks have gone to taking an internship with companies that give them the experience they need and want, rather then taking a job within their own communities…I don’t blame them for that!…As long as the tax dollars aren’t allocated towards thd black community, it’s a lost cause! The writer of this book has a valid point, but it doesn’t fit into our current situation!

    • nicholas

      @Steelcitychick-you lose, payup! lol! Your reply, at least in the first paragraph, did contain a ring of truth. This is the time to stand on a few simple principles. #1.Seek out black owned and operated businesses when possible, and spend your money with them. We all know that will only be a very small percentage. # 2. In the absense of black owned businesses. Find ones that employ blacks on a commision basis or in responsible positions. These are the blacks you speak about with the experience gained with their internships. Blacks spend $500Billion yearly and it should be circulated within our community as many times as posible, before it goes out of to other businesses. This will encourage us to go into business with the knowledge that as long as we are honest and work hard, we will get payed according to our effort and skill. We don,t need tax allocations and we are not a lost cause. The book will fit, needing only very minor and doable alterations.

      • JGunner

        I agree with you. In technical terms it's called "Vertical Integration". There is a great read by Dr. Claud Anderson called "PowerNomics" explaining a plan for the national empowering of Black America. I think you might like it. He goes into great detail about many of your points. Check it out.