Black Americans were the most Inventive People in World History

[Tair]

"Northern Black Americans were the most inventive people in world history."

Second, Black patenting by northern residents during this period should be considered extremely high relative to the national rate at any time in U.S. history. Simply put, from the period after the end of the Civil War to start of World War II, northern Black people were among the most inventive people in world history.

Despite living and working in the North, these and other Black inventors, entrepreneurs, and workers of all kinds faced discrimination and professional and financial barriers that white people did not.[18] Obtaining a patent was more difficult for Black people, because it often involved working with a white lawyer who may be tempted to engage in unfair dealings. These obstacles, no doubt, suppressed the wealth, fame, and influence of Black inventors—and yet, many succeeded in making important contributions to American technological and economic development. What is striking is that even while lacking complete liberty, Black people in the North acquired and practiced cutting-edge creativity, science, and technical skills at very high rates for a substantial period of U.S. history.

Why do we see fewer Black innovators today than yesterday?

Several important institutions changed in the North that help explain why opportunities for Black advancement seem to have stalled and even reversed after the Golden Age of Invention. The 1920s saw the birth of zoning laws and other government-backed institutions that closed off real estate markets to Black people, leading to rapid increases in racial segregation which did not reach their peak until the 1970s.[19] With racial segregation made either an explicit goal or viewed as an unavoidable side effect, governments around the country fostered segregation and corralled Black people into areas that were targeted for disinvestment in important public resources, including education.[20] Meanwhile, powerful professional associations—including the American Bar Association and American Medical Association—gained prominence in the early 20th century and used their emerging power, in part, to officially discriminate against Black people for decades.

The north is talked about a lot, so why weren't Black people in the south inventing at comparable rates to those in the north?

Our estimates for total patents by Black people during the Golden Age of Invention are similar to those previously published. We use the same database as used in Sarada et al., but we emphasize the importance of regional differences and how legal and cultural institutions in the South were particularly harmful to Black people. In this way, we build on the research of economist Lisa Cook, who is the only scholar we know of who has systematically analyzed how Jim Crow laws suppressed invention among Black people.[6] We extend her work by using a more comprehensive measure of inventors, one that links patent records to newly released digital data from the U.S. Census Bureau for relevant years during the 1870 to 1940 period.

In southern states, patenting is almost uniformly lower for white and Black people, but some of the within-race comparisons are instructive. In states with heavy historical slave populations—such as Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas, and Florida—patenting was much higher for Black people who were born there than patenting by residence. This suggests that these states were especially bad at providing practice opportunities, but many Black people born there achieved inventive success elsewhere after migrating.

But, just because southern Black Americans did not invent at rates equal to or higher than northern Black Americans, they still invented at comparable rates to whites living in the south despite racism.

Black Americans who lived in the U.S. South in the late 19th and early 20th century, where their opportunities to acquire and apply skills were severely limited by oppressive institutions. Still, Black Americans living outside the South invented nearly as frequently as white Americans, and at rates that would be considered extremely high by historic or global standards of invention even today.

What needs to be done now to foster the Black inventive spirit again?

Throughout northern states, the Golden Age of Invention in America provided a tantalizing glimpse into what Black people could accomplish if given robust opportunities to learn and practice in highly skilled fields. These accomplishments negated the assumption—once held by many in America—that Black people cannot thrive just as well as any other group at the most challenging cognitive activities. National leaders should apply this historical lesson to today’s institutional landscape, and seek out and eliminate barriers to the full participation of Black people in American life.

Source: The Black innovators who elevated the United States: Reassessing the Golden Age of Invention

 

[The Fade]

We worked hard?

 

[Secure Da Bag]

Why do we see fewer Black innovators today than yesterday?

How many of our potential innovators are getting into the institutions to allow them to cultivate those innovations?

 

[Fiji Water]

More of this kind of thing should be taught in middle school to kids of all races/demographics.

 

[ORDER_66]

No shyt

 

[Buckeye Fever]

We worked hard?

I heard we were lazy, good for nothin trixters, breathin all the white man's air

 

[Tair]

No shyt

Just trying to add some positivity to all the negativity.

How many of our potential innovators are getting into the institutions to allow them to cultivate those innovations?

I was about to post a thread of California liberals taking money out of a predominantly Black school's arts program and allocating the funds to their white kids' schools. That was just in the last few years (I think last year).

It never hurts to know more about our people though, because we are programmed at an early age to think we haven't done much.


"your people didn't invent things",
"your people do poorly in education",
"your people score lower on tests",
"your people have different cognitive abilities that are geared towards sports and entertainment"


they say all of that without discussing the 'why' which is the more fruitful discussion to have, especially considering what we know now.

I know @Take It In Blood's idol, Sam Harris, loves talking about how Black people score lower on IQ tests, but never the why.

 

[Tair]

Happy Black History Month

 

[get these nets]

OP

Good info, but a lot of those "Northern" Black people were Southern born and part of the early waves of the Great Migration.

Their natural genius was given more space to develop outside of Jim Crow terrorism and legal restrictions.

Salute to AAs, at any rate, good article.

 

[Gloxina]

I heard we were lazy, good for nothin trixters, breathin all the white man's air

Rep lol

 

[get these nets]

I heard we were lazy, good for nothin trixters, breathin all the white man's air

 

[broller]

More of this kind of thing should be taught in middle school to kids of all races/demographics.

 

[I Really Mean It]

there is no question that black americans - ADOS, specifically - are the most creative people on this planet. our contributions to society are many and prominent.