Publications

Publications

The MIT Black History Project is committed to collecting, developing, curating, and preserving content on the Black experience at MIT dating back to 1865. We are also currently working with others to bring this knowledge to bear on the challenges we all face within the greater scope of the Institute’s mission and accomplishments.

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Democracy and New Media in Developing Nations: Opportunities and Challenges, 2003
Book
2000s

Democracy and New Media in Developing Nations: Opportunities and Challenges, 2003

Alum
A chapter by MIT alumnus Adam Clayton Powell III '67 examining how new media technologies present both opportunities and obstacles for democracy in the developing world.
Other Researchers
The Ghetto: Five Years of Black Radio, The Tech, 1975
Article
1970s

The Ghetto: Five Years of Black Radio, 1975

Student
An article documenting the history of WTBS's 'The Ghetto,' the Black Students' Union soul-music radio program that served the Cambridge and Boston community for five years.
Other Researchers
Ramona Allen, 1996
Oral History
1990s

Transcript: Interview with Ramona B. Allen, 1996

Administrator
An oral history interview with Ramona B. Allen, dean for Human Resources in MIT's School of Architecture and Planning, conducted for the Technology and the Dream project.
MIT Black History Project
Interview with Phillip Clay, 2002
Oral History
2000s

Interview with Phillip L. Clay, 2002

Multiple
A 2002 oral history interview with MIT urban planning professor Phillip L. Clay, conducted by Clarence G. Williams for the MIT Black History Project.
MIT Black History Project
James C. Evans, Jr.
Article
1960s

Frat President: James Evans heads chapter of Pi Lambda Phi, 1961

Student
A 1961 Ebony magazine article announcing James Carmichael Evans Jr. as president of a Pi Lambda Phi chapter, marking a milestone in Black fraternity life at MIT.
Other Researchers
Book
1940s

The Negro in the Army: Policy and Practice, 1948

Alum
A book-length summary prepared for the Secretary of the Army in 1948 by MIT alumnus James Evans '26 on the policy and practice of Black service in the U.S. Army.
Other Researchers
Adam Clayton Powells III and IVs
Article
2010s

If Your Name Is Powell, Take a Number, 2010

Alum
A profile of MIT alumnus Adam Clayton Powell IV '92, navigating his own identity and career in the long shadow of a prominent political family dynasty.
Thesis
1960s

A Study of the Pulsating Growth of Cumulus Clouds, 1960

Student
The 1960 doctoral dissertation of MIT meteorologist Charles Anderson, a Tuskegee Airman, on the pulsating growth of cumulus clouds over Arizona mountains.
Other Researchers
Illustration of John Urschel by Patrick Leger
Article
2010s

From the NFL to MIT: The Double Life of John Urschel, 2017

Student
A profile of MIT math PhD student and NFL offensive lineman John Urschel, who pursued elite athletics and advanced mathematics simultaneously before retiring to focus on research.
Other Researchers
Type
Timeline
Including the Excluded: Concepts for Successful Integration of the US Academy, 2014
Article
2017
Other Researchers
2010s
Other Researchers
2010s
Article
A lecture by MIT professor James Sherley on concepts for integrating underrepresented groups into the US scientific enterprise, delivered at a Johns Hopkins retreat.
Faculty
Civil Rights, the War on Poverty, and Black-White Convergence in Infant Mortality in the Rural South and Mississippi, 2006
Paper
2017
Other Researchers
2000s
Other Researchers
2000s
Paper
A 2006 public health study examining how civil rights legislation and the War on Poverty drove convergence in Black and white infant mortality rates in the rural South.
Faculty
Black Capitalism and Black Supermarkets, 1969
Paper
2017
Other Researchers
1960s
Other Researchers
1960s
Paper
A 1969 article by MIT economist Gordon Bloom examining the economics and social dimensions of Black-owned businesses and supermarkets in urban America.
Faculty
MIT's Black Hole: Dr. James L. Sherley is just the latest professor to protest the lack of Black tenured faculty at MIT, 2007
Article
2017
Other Researchers
2000s
Other Researchers
2000s
Article
An article examining the broader pattern of Black faculty departures from MIT, placing the James Sherley case in the context of a longer institutional history.
No items found.
An Avoidable Black Eye for MIT: Professor James Sherley Is Dismissed and His Laboratory Padlocked, 2007
Article
2017
Other Researchers
2000s
Other Researchers
2000s
Article
An analysis of the 2007 termination of MIT stem-cell researcher James L. Sherley, whose dismissal and hunger strike sparked a campus-wide debate on race and tenure.
No items found.
It's No Picnic for Black Faculty at MIT, 2007
Article
2017
Other Researchers
2000s
Other Researchers
2000s
Article
A 2007 study documenting that Black faculty represent only about 3 percent of MIT's total faculty, analyzing the barriers to recruitment and retention.
No items found.
MIT's Mea Culpa: Now, What About Black Faculty?, 1999
Article
2017
Other Researchers
1990s
Other Researchers
1990s
Article
A 1999 analysis of MIT's landmark report on discrimination against women faculty, and whether its findings would prompt similar action for Black faculty.
No items found.
The Scientific Development of the Negro, 1911
Paper
2017
Other Researchers
1910s
Other Researchers
1910s
Paper
A paper delivered by Robert Robinson Taylor '92 at MIT's 50th anniversary celebration in 1911, arguing for the scientific education of Black Americans as a path to progress.
Alum
The Civil Engineer, 1946
Article
2017
Other Researchers
1940s
Other Researchers
1940s
Article
An article profiling Lewis King Downing '24, the first Black graduate of MIT's Sloan School, who went on to a distinguished career as a civil engineer and college president.
Alum
The Desegregation of an Elite Economics Department’s PhD Program: Black Americans at MIT, 2014
Article
2017
Other Researchers
2010s
Other Researchers
2010s
Article
An article tracing the history of Black PhD students in MIT's economics department from the 1970s onward, examining barriers to entry and outcomes over four decades.
Alum
The African-American Linguist Who Broke the Faculty Barrier at MIT, 1997
Article
2017
Other Researchers
1990s
Other Researchers
1990s
Article
An article documenting how Joseph Applegate, MIT's first Black faculty member, broke the faculty color barrier as a linguist in 1955 and paved the way for those who followed.
No items found.
The battle for ‘Trayvon Martin’: Mapping a media controversy online and off-line, 2014
Article
2017
Other Researchers
2010s
Other Researchers
2010s
Article
An academic article by MIT professor Sasha Costanza-Chock analyzing how the Trayvon Martin case spread through social media and shaped public discourse on race and violence.
Faculty
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