Civilization the Primal Need of the Race, and The Attitude of the American Mind Toward the Negro Intellect The American Negro Academy. Occasional Paper No. 3

"Civilization the Primal Need of the Race, and The Attitude of the American Mind Toward the Negro Intellect" by Alexander Crummell is a collection of addresses delivered in the late 19th century. This scholarly work, consisting of two pivotal addresses, outlines the necessity of cultural development and intellectual elevation for the African American community and critiques the prevailing attitudes toward Negro intellect at that time. Crummell emphasizes that civilization, through literature, art, and philosophy, is essential for the progress of the race. In his inaugural address, Crummell argues that the lack of artistic and scholarly pursuits among African Americans leads to cultural inferiority, advocating for a movement toward higher education and intellectual engagement to combat societal perceptions of racial inferiority. He observes the systemic denial of educational opportunities for black individuals by a predominantly white society, highlighting the damaging effects of such attitudes on the cultural development of the Negro. Ultimately, Crummell calls for the empowerment of black intellectuals to foster change within their communities, urging that self-recognition and self-advocacy in the face of discrimination are crucial for progress. The second address focuses on the historical neglect and systematic obstruction faced by black intellect, reinforcing the necessity for an intellectual renaissance within the African American community. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Alexander Crummell was an American minister and academic. Ordained as an Episcopal priest in the United States, Crummell went to England in the late 1840s to raise money for his church by lecturing about American slavery. Abolitionists supported his three years of study at Cambridge University, where Crummell developed concepts of pan-Africanism and was the school's first recorded Black student and graduate.