W. E. B. Du Bois: Scholar and Activist (Black Americans of Achievement)

127 Pages·2004·2.47 MB·English

by  Mark Stafford

CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page i
Black Americans of Achievement
L E G A C Y E D I T I O N
W.E.B. Du Bois
Scholar and Activist
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page ii
Black Americans of Achievement
L E G A C Y E D I T I O N
Muhammad Ali
Frederick Douglass
W.E.B. Du Bois
Marcus Garvey
Alex Haley
Langston Hughes
Jesse Jackson
Coretta Scott King
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Malcolm X
Thurgood Marshall
Jesse Owens
Rosa Parks
Colin Powell
Sojourner Truth
Harriet Tubman
Nat Turner
Booker T. Washington
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page iii
Black Americans of Achievement
L E G A C Y E D I T I O N
W.E.B. Du Bois
Scholar and Activist
Mark Stafford
With additional text written by
John Davenport
Consulting Editor, Revised Edition
Heather Lehr Wagner
Senior Consulting Editor, First Edition
Nathan Irvin Huggins
Director, W.E.B. Du Bois Institute
for Afro-American Research
Harvard University
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page iv
COVER: Black American writer and racial advocate W.E.B.Du Bois in a 1918 portrait.
CHELSEA HOUSE PUBLISHERS
VP,NEWPRODUCTDEVELOPMENT Sally Cheney
DIRECTOROFPRODUCTION Kim Shinners
CREATIVEMANAGER Takeshi Takahashi
MANUFACTURINGMANAGER Diann Grasse
Staff for W.E.B. DU BOIS
EXECUTIVEEDITOR Lee Marcott
ASSISTANTEDITOR Alexis Browsh
PRODUCTIONEDITOR Noelle Nardone
PHOTOEDITOR Sarah Bloom
SERIESANDCOVERDESIGNER Keith Trego
LAYOUT 21st Century Publishing and Communications,Inc.
©2005 by Chelsea House Publishers,
a subsidiary ofHaights Cross Communications.
All rights reserved.Printed and bound in the United States ofAmerica.
www.chelseahouse.com
First Printing
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Stafford,Mark.
W.E.B.Du Bois :scholar and activist / by Mark Stafford with additional text by
John Davenport.—Rev.ed.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p.) and index.
ISBN 0-7910-8158-3—ISBN 0-7910-8332-2 (pbk.)
1.Du Bois,W.E.B.(William Edward Burghardt),1868-1963—Juvenile literature.2.African
Americans—Biography—Juvenile literature.3.Civil rights workers—United States—
Biography—Juvenile literature.4.African American scholars—Biography—Juvenile literature.
5.African American political activists—Biography—Juvenile literature.6.National Association
for the Advancement ofColored People—Juvenile literature.I.Title:W.E.B.DuBois.
II.Davenport,John,1960- III.Title.
E185.97.D73S68 2004
305.896'073'0092—dc22
2004008449
All links and web addresses were checked and verified to be correct at the time ofpublication.
Because ofthe dynamic nature ofthe web,some addresses and links may have changed
since publication and may no longer be valid.
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page v
Contents
Introduction vi
1 “To Be a Leader of My People”
1
2 “A Boy’s Paradise”
8
3 The Making of a Scholar
19
4 Behind the Veil
34
5 “A Critical Time”
54
6 A Bitter Harvest
74
7 The Struggle for Peace
84
8 The Father of Africa
94
Appendix 103
Chronology 105
Further Reading 107
Index 108
About the Contributors 118
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page vi
Introduction
Nearly 20 years ago Chelsea House Publishers began to publish
the first volumes in the series called BLACK AMERICANS OF
ACHIEVEMENT.This series eventually numbered over a hundred
books and profiled outstanding African Americans from
many walks oflife.Today,ifyou ask school teachers and school
librarians what comes to mind when you mention Chelsea
House,many will say—“Black Americans of Achievement.”
The mix of individuals whose lives we covered was eclectic,
to say the least. Some were well known—Muhammad Ali
and Dr.Martin Luther King,Jr,for example.But others,such
as Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, were lesser-known
figures who were introduced to modern readers through these
books. The individuals profiled were chosen for their actions,
their deeds,and ultimately their influence on the lives ofothers
and their impact on our nation as a whole. By sharing these
stories of unique Americans, we hoped to illustrate how
ordinary individuals can be transformed by extraordinary
circumstances to become people of greatness. We also hoped
that these special stories would encourage young-adult readers
to make their own contribution to a better world.Judging from
the many wonderful letters we have received about the BLACK
AMERICANS OF ACHIEVEMENT biographies over the years from
students,librarians,and teachers,they have certainly fulfilled
the goal of inspiring others!
Now, some 20 years later, we are publishing 18 volumes of
the original BLACKAMERICANSOFACHIEVEMENTseries in revised
editions to bring the books into the twenty-first century and
vi
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page vii
INTRODUCTION vii
make them available to a new generation ofyoung-adult readers.The
selection was based on the importance of these figures to American
life and the popularity of the original books with our readers.These
revised editions have a new full-color design and,wherever possible,
we have added color photographs. The books have new features,
including quotes from the writings and speeches of leaders and
interesting and unusual facts about their lives. The concluding
section of each book gives new emphasis to the legacy of these men
and women for the current generation of readers.
The lives of these African-American leaders are unique and
remarkable.By transcending the barriers that racism placed in their
paths, they are examples of the power and resiliency of the human
spirit and are an inspiration to readers.
We present these wonderful books to our audience for their
reading pleasure.
Lee M.Marcott
Chelsea House Publishers
August 2004
CH.BAA.WEB.aFM.Final.q 7/21/04 1:04 PM Page viii
CH.BAA.WEB.C01.Final.q 7/21/04 1:08 PM Page 1
1
“To Be a Leader
of My People”
W.E.B. Du Bois was eager to return home. After spending the
past two years overseas, studying on a fellowship at
Friedrich Wilhelm University in Berlin, Germany, he was
ready to go back to the United States and put his education
to work. In Berlin, where he had mixed freely with whites
and had been treated as their equal, the black scholar had
written in his diary that his chief aim was “to make a name
for myself in science and literature and to be a leader of my
people.” Now, at the age of 26, the time to realize his goals
had arrived.
Du Bois stepped onto the main deck of the SS Chester
just as it began to veer into New York harbor. He was fairly
bored after nine monotonous days at sea and decided to
study the passengers who shared his steerage accommoda-
tions.Russians,Greeks,Austrians,Germans,Poles—they were
an impressive sight.
1