Chancellor James Williams

                                                          Chancellor James Williams

 African-American sociologist, historian and writer. He was the author of The Destruction of Black Civilization (1971).

Williams was born on December 22, 1893, in Bennettsville, South Carolina, as the last of five children; his father was a former slave, while his mother was a cook, nurse, and evangelist. His innate curiosity concerning the realities of racial inequality and cultural struggles, particularly those which involved African Americans, began as early as his fifth-grade year. Years later, he was quoted in an early interview as saying: "I was very sensitive about the position of black people in the town... I wanted to know how you explain this great difference. How is it that we were in such low circumstances as compared to the whites? And when they answered 'slavery' as the explanation, then I wanted to know where we came from."
He moved with his family to Washington, DC in the early 20th century. His first wife, Dorothy Ann Williams, died in 1925, leaving him a widower with five children.

Dr. Williams was a son of the reconstruction south. His father had been a former slave, and his mother had been a cook, a nurse, and an evangelist. Professor Williams' curiosity, about racial equality and cultural struggles began as early as the fifth grade. Thus he devoted his lifetime and academic pursuits to the study of ancient history.

Williams earned an undergraduate degree in Education in 1930 followed by a Master of Arts degree in History in 1935, both from Howard University. After completing a doctoral dissertation on the socioeconomic significance of the storefront church movement in the United States since 1920, he was awarded a Ph.D. in history and sociology by American University in 1949.
Williams began his studies abroad as a visiting professor to the universities of Oxford and London in England in 1953 and 1954. In 1956, he did field research in African history at Ghana's University College. At that time, his main focus was on African achievements and self-ruling civilizations which existed long before the coming of the Europeans or Asians. His last study, completed in 1964, covered 26 countries and more than 100 language groupings.

In 1935 Williams took the post of Administrative Principal for the Cheltenham School for Boys in Maryland.Four years later he became a teacher in the Washington, DC public schools. He entered the employment of the U.S. Federal Government in 1941, filling a variety of positions such as section chief of Census Bureau, statistician for War Relocation Board, and economist in Office of Price Administration. In 1946 he returned to his alma mater as a social science instructor until 1952. It was then that he transferred to the history department, where he remained until he retired in 1966.

The liberation of the mind was one of the main messages. To understand the African way of life contrary to the European. The Ideologies and value system of the oppressors unconsciously become those of the oppressed.
Reeducation of Blacks will be required for the two mandatory changes in attitude: one toward each other in terms of mutual respect, and the other, a change in attitude about efficiency, expertise in business management and financial responsibility and management.

He conducted field studies covering 26 nations in West, Central, East and Southern Africa, researching some 105 different societies and language groups. The results are an interpretation of Black History from the conquered as opposed to that of the conqueror. He assessed the factors that lead to the downfall of a people who were once the "Cradle of Civilization." He explains what happened, how it happened, and most importantly, what can be done about it. Meanwhile, all of these insights and ideas are available.

Professor Williams published over 50 articles, professional books, and lectures. Among his publications are The Raven, The Rebirth of African Civilization, and the greatest book, The Destruction of Black Civilization.

       Destruction Of The Black Civilization (Chancellor Williams)


     Unbiased Black History Dr Chancellor Williams on Why Africans Were Enslaved