Here's information on a couple of famous African-American
psychologists from the 20th century:
Francis Cecil Sumner (1895-1954)
After earning a couple of BA degrees, he applied to graduate programs
at the University of Illinois and American University, but was
rejected by both schools. He was eventually accepted to Clark
University and on June 14, 1920, he became the first African American
to earn a PhD in psychology.
He later went on to teach at what is now West Virginia State College
as well as Howard University. Somewhat ironically, he published
articles about the need to limit African American higher education,
but some researchers contend that these were merely public views and
did not reflect his true feelings.
Kenneth Bancroft Clark (1914-)
He obtained his BA and MA from Howard University under the guidance of
Sumner and thought highly of him (which may give us some indication of
Sumner's private views). His PhD work at Columbia University
investigated the developmental effects of discrimination and prejudice
on children, which was incorporated into a court brief used in the
1954 Supreme Court case "Brown v. Board of Education" that ended
segregation in U.S. education (which is ironic considering Sumner's
work). He was the first and only African-American president of the APA
(American Psychological Association) in 1970-71.
Source: Hergenhahn, B.R. (2001). An introduction to the history of
psychology (4th ed). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. pp. 315-317. |
