Business and Economic Development Theme Analysis

In The Mis-Education of the Negro, Carter G. Woodson’s primary concern is how Black Americans can overcome the barriers to their success—including the country’s ineffective education system—and advance as a community. Woodson defines this advancement as a movement toward economic self-sufficiency, political equality, and artistic achievement. However, he sees economic development as by far the most important of these goals. In addition to helping Black people build more vibrant communities for themselves, he thinks economic development is also the best way for Black communities to support their political and artistic development in the long term. Thus, Woodson encourages young Black people to invest their creative energy into new enterprises because he views business as the most sustainable and rewarding way for Black Americans to fight segregation.

Woodson sees business as the primary definition of success—he thinks that it will allow Black people to become autonomous, build power, and improve their standing in American society. Most importantly, Woodson sees forming industries as a way for Black people to build political bargaining power. To illustrate this point, he quotes Frederick Douglass, who argued that Black people have to become a crucial part of the American economy if they wanted to have their political demands taken seriously. In other words, if they control certain industries, they can threaten to shut those industries down if their rights aren’t respected. This is a powerful way for Black people to make their voices heard and fight segregation. Woodson also argues that Black-owned businesses provide greater opportunities and more stability for Black workers. This is because he thinks that, so long as they are working for white people, Black people will always be economically vulnerable. The early years of the Great Depression clearly illustrate this problem: Black workers were often the first to be laid off, since white employers valued them the least. Woodson sees this as a compelling reason for Black people to build their own industries, in which Black workers could work in better conditions. Finally, Woodson sees entrepreneurship as a way for Black people to thrive despite segregation. As the early 20th-century economy is divided along racial lines, Black people generally see no benefit from spending money in white-owned businesses but benefit greatly from contributing to Black-owned businesses. Thus, Woodson thinks that, by creating more Black-owned businesses and redirecting Black consumers’ spending to those businesses, it will be possible to raise up the entire community from within.

Woodson argues that the best way to create these new industries is to invest in young Black people, whose creative energy he considers the best source of economic and social change. Woodson points out that young Black people have a choice about how to try to advance economically: they can work for someone else, or they can start their own businesses. He argues that they should choose to build their own businesses, because this gives them far more potential for growth. Whereas a better salary will only slightly improve their lives, starting small businesses can enable enterprising Black people to lift themselves out of poverty, mutually support one another, and improve their lives even in a racially segregated society. For instance, he suggests that a young washerwoman should try to open a steam-powered laundry, turning her existing skills into a profitable company. While most Black graduates take low-paying jobs at large, white-owned companies, Woodson reiterates that if they create businesses instead, they will help their communities grow and see their opportunities increase over time. Woodson also connects his belief in self-motivated entrepreneurship to his faith in education. Namely, he views effective education as an investment in a student’s individual skills and abilities, and he sees successful businesses as the result of such an investment. In other words, Woodson defines success as economic growth, and he sees education as the key to that growth.

In Woodson’s estimation, Black Americans were not able to fulfill their potential for centuries because they were shut out of the economy and the school system. But in the early 20th century, Woodson finally sees this possibility on the horizon. In other words, because Black entrepreneurs can participate in a free market for the first time—even if it is an embattled, segregated one—they finally have the chance to unleash their underutilized skills and creative energy. They can develop their neighborhoods, build a self-sufficient economy in the Black community, and contribute monumentally to the United States’ success as a whole. But Woodson sees educational reforms as a key first step in making these possibilities into realities.