Great Men of Knowledge

Chancellor James Williams
Chancellor James Williams (December 22, 1898, Bennettsville, South Carolina – December 7, 1992, Washington, DC),
writer, university professor, and historian, was the author of
The Destruction of Black Civilization: Great Issues of a Race Between 4500 B.C. and 2000 A.D.,
a book which has become a cornerstone of the field of academics known as Afrocentrism.

The Destruction of Black Civilization

The Destruction of Black Civilization is a book written by

Chancellor Williams.

It was first published by

Kendall Hunt

in 1971, with a second edition published by Third World Press in 1987.

The book, on a region-by-region basis, elaborates upon the history of Africans prior to the advent of Asian and European settlement and trade on the continent of Africa.

It also presents an assessment of traditional systems of government and religion in such regions, particularly in empires such as Monomotapa and Kuba.

Finally, it denigrates the influence of Arabs and Europeans upon the continent, particularly the propagation of religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

The book is seen largely as a work of both Afrocentrism and Black orientalism.

When published in 1987, the second edition of the book received a wide wave of critical acclaim, including from such people as New Jersey poet laureate Amiri Baraka and noted professor John Henrik Clarke.

Years of cultural change enabled people to see the value of Williams' work. The 21st Century Foundation honored Chancellor Williams, making him the first person to receive its Clarence L. Holte International Biennial Prize.

Preparing to release his most famous book,

Williams did not wait for grants or fellowships to publish it. On his apparent hastiness, he commented:

"I was out of step with tradition."

He also said,

"I rebelled against overspecialization. Even when I had the required courses for my majors, I would take other subjects in which I was equally interested. I was interested in pure science, for example, even though I was majoring in history. I was also interested in psychology. My transcripts from Howard, where I did most of my formal study, won't give you any idea of what my major really was."

Dr. Williams died of respiratory failure on December 7, 1992 at Providence Hospital.

He had been a resident of the Washington Center for Aging Services for several years. He was survived by his wife of 65 years, Mattie Williams of Washington, and 14 children; 36 grandchildren; 38 great-grandchildren; and 10 great-great-grandchildren.

Books Authored

• The Raven: A Novel of Edgar Allan Poe (1943)
• And If I Were White, Shaw Publications, (1946)
• Have You Been to the River?, Exposition Press, (1952)
• Problems in African History, Pencraft Books, (1964)
• The Rebirth of African Civilization (1961) revised edition, introduction by Baba Zulu, United Brothers and Sisters Communications Systems, (1993) ISBN 0-88378-129-8
• The Destruction of Black Civilization: Great Issues of a Race Between 4500 B.C. and 2000 A.D.ISBN 0-88378-030-5 (1971)
• The Second Agreement with Hell, Carlton Press, (1979)