Carter Godwin Woodson (1875–1950), known as the Father of Black History, rose from humble beginnings in New Canton, Virginia, the son of formerly enslaved parents. A visionary historian and educator, he believed that "the mere imparting of information is not education."

"Truth comes to us from the past," he once said, "then, like gold washed down from the mountains."

Woodson was a gifted teacher, scholar, and writer who understood that prejudice is not innate—it is taught. In his landmark 1933 work, The Mis-Education of the Negro, he examined the legacy of slavery from the perspective of the enslaved and called for a complete rethinking of how history is told.

With unrelenting passion, he wrote, "Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history."

He championed self-reliance and the great cultural heritage of African Americans. His discoveries offered pride, dignity, and empowerment through shared knowledge of vital accomplishments.

“We should emphasize not Negro History, but the Negro in history,” he said. “What we need is not a history of selected races or nations, but the history of the world void of national bias, race hate, and religious prejudice.” These words became the foundation for Negro History Week in 1926—what we now celebrate as Black History Month.

“The accounts of the successful strivings of Negroes for enlightenment under most adverse circumstances,” he wrote, “read like beautiful romances of a people in a heroic age.”