Lesson 1:
W. E. B. DuBois

An ongoing illustrative history study
This piece originally posted 6/6/2020


Prelude | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Email

W.E.B. DuBois - pen and ink, 2.5 in. x 3.5 in.

All right folks. Time to further y'all's education. I know Black History Month was in February, but current events strongly suggest some of you didn't take advantage of the opportunity to educate yourselves. So watch this space over the next few weeks for some sketchcard pen & inks, biographies and homework assignments. Grateful thanks to my dear friend Jen for goading me out of a longstanding artistic rut.

Talking of education: I'm going to lead off with one of the most freakishly well-educated people Western society has ever produced: W. E. B. Du Bois. Seriously, look at his publication list. Typical Massachusetts native/Harvard alum overachiever. [grin]

Go look him up. The man challenged conventional thinking at a lot of levels --including academia, which (big secret here) isn't always receptive to that sort of thing. He held Views on Reconstruction that were not in tune with the prevailing majority of the time. And of course he was accused of being a Communist in the 40's --try finding a well-traveled black man who didn't make the FBI's 'subversives' list in those days. In particular Google "Fisk University Protest" and "San Francisco Conference 1945."

Go learn about the man --there may or may not be a quiz later. And watch this space for more of these prompts.

Next page - Lesson 2: Frederick Douglass


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