Negro History Week By Historian Carter G Woodson

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The establishment of Black History Month started as Negro History Week in 1969, which paved the way for Black History month in 1976. Historian Carter G Woodson created the idea to spotlight to accomplishments of African Americans. In 1915, Woodson helped the association for the study of negro life and history. Woodson believed that publishing scientific history would transform the way others saw Africans and people with African decent known as African Americans. Woodson wanted African Americans to be popularized by the findings of black intellectuals. The way Woodson wanted to go about spreading the knowledge of African American history was putting “The Journal of Negro History” which was a book that was established in 1916. With publishing this book Woodson knew that …show more content…

In 1926 released a press conference announcing Negro History Week would be in February. It has been said that Woodson wanted Negro History Week to be in February because it was the birthdays of very big historical faces Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglas. Negro History Week began to expand throughout the 1920s and 1930s in public and county schools. Woodson and the association started to demand materials for teachers to teach about Negro history. Well before Woodson’s death in 1940 he began to emphasize the need for Negro History Week to be more than just a week. As a result of all the hard work Woodson did in getting recognition for all African Americans in the South black teachers taught negro history in replacement for United States History. In 1940s efforts within the black community expanded the study of black history in schools and celebration before the public. In this time the civil rights movement was very active, so the teaching of negro history was not allowed. Teachers would have to sneak and hide their studies from the principle in order to teach students negro