I will never forget the first time I used the “T” word in one of my history classes. Now, before I go on to explain what the “T” word is, if you have graduated from a HBCU and taken any course in African American history, you should already be familiar with the term. In fact, you would know that the use of words such as “tribe,” “village,” “Indian,” or other westernized phraseologies that undermine African cultural sensibilities are strictly prohibited.
Across many HBCU departments, students are taught to respect and appreciate culture, society, and the political and educational contributions of peoples of African descent. More important, we are reprogrammed to put away western modes of thinking, seeing, and doing, in exchange for developing an ethnocentric lens for which to view and critique the world.
Whether it was Booker T. Washington in the 1890s or Spike Lee and The Cosby’s in the 1990s, the message is still the same: Black is Beautiful. At HBCUs, students are awakened to Black consciousness. Here are Seven (shout out to the Jewels) books I believe truly awakens the spirit to Black pride.
7. Booker T. Washington, Up From Slavery: The Autobiography of Booker T. Washington
6. George G. M. James, Stolen Legacy
5. Lawrence Ross Jr., The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities
4. Carter G. Woodson, The Mis-Education of the Negro
3. Cheikh Anta Diop, The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality
2. W. E. B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk
1. Ivan Van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus: The African Presence in Ancient America
What books would you add to the list?
State of HBCUs 