The year 2009 marked two important events: the one-hundred-year anniversary of the founding of the NAACP, and the inauguration of the country's first African-American president. How timely that The Gift of Black Folk is now back in print, providing a powerful picture of the struggles that paved the way for freedom and equality in our nation.
William Edward Burghardt Du Bois, a gifted writer, scholar, sociologist, historian, and activist, became the first African-American to receive a PhD from Harvard University in 1895. An exponent of full equality for African- Americans, Du Bois was a cofounder of the Niagara Movement, which became the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909. A leading voice of the black community, Dr. Du Bois’ teachings, writings, and lectures provided a platform for his views that prompted action and change. Until his death in 1963, W.E.B. Du Bois led a passionate life of ceaseless energy and purposeful writing.