Born to a well-to-do African American family in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, Drusilla Dunjee Houston left behind a lucrative future as a classical pianist and took a job as a teacher in Oklahoma. During her decades spent in her adopted state, she helped launch the Oklahoma N.A.A.C.P., Red Cross, and other organizations. She opened schools and acted as administrator, helping to educate women in the first part of the 20th century. Dunjee Houston, too, turned to writing, producing nearly 3,000 editorials, numerous poems, a screen play, and, arguably, the first book examining the history of Africa written by a woman.
While her name isn't yet numbered among greats of her time, like W.E.B. Du Bois, Carter G. Woodson, and others, there is no denying the outsized influence Drusilla Dunjee Houston had on the advocacy for equity for African Americans and women, and the exploration of the great history held on the African continent.
This volume contains 20 editorials written or co-written by Drusilla Dunjee Houston, three of her poems, and a brief biographical overview of her life. Of special note to the editor are her articles written directly after the Tulsa Race Riots.
