Feature Article:

The Life and Work of Oscar Micheaux Book Review by Earl James Young, Jr. - Dr. Beverly J. Robinson - Posted 10-May-03 “The Life and Work of Oscar Micheaux” I am extremely pleased and honored that I had the chance to read and experience this book about a driven and determined man. The amount of research and time the authors put in to bringing this man back to life is commendable. I truly believe this book will be invaluable toward educating the African American community about a great pioneering champion whom the film industry has not recognized. The amount of knowledge and fortitude Micheaux needed to start and run multiple companies through the early twenties, the great depression and the war years is remarkable. It showed how he was able to take his love for writing and leave a great legacy for Americans through his forty or more films and seven books. I am certainly going to learn more about this self-educated African American pioneer for years to come. Finally, how our own African American people presented negative opinions and nonsupport towards Oscar Micheaux was well documented. I have often mentioned that we are our most unsympathetic critics and covetous people that stand in the way of the success of others. We should embrace heroes like Micheaux, who worked hard to succeed in a racist and segregated environment; a climate that was more tumultuous during his lifetime and in the film industry than in our present day for African Americans. Ricardo C. Geter President and Founder of Afroroots.Com Send comments to: webmaster@afroroots.com kmtpub@juno.com