Founded in 1978 by W. Paul Coates, Black Classic Press is devoted to publishing obscure and significant works by and about people of African descent to extend the memory of important books that have helped in meaningful ways to shape the Black diasporic experience and our understanding of the world.
BCP has published original titles by notable authors including Walter Mosley, John Henrik Clarke, E. Ethelbert Miller, Yosef Ben-Jochannan, and Dorothy B. Porter, as well as reissuing significant works by Amiri Baraka, Larry Neal, W. E. B. Du Bois, Edward Blyden, Bobby Seale, J. A. Rogers, and others.
The Osiris Papers: Reflection of the Life and Writings of Dr. Frances Cress Welsing – Ed. Raymond Winbush & Denise Wright – examines the life, theories, and contributions of one of the greatest African thinkers on racism and white supremacy through an assembled group of scholars, activists and entertainers.
Black Fire: An Anthology of Afro-American Writing – Ed. Amiri Baraka & Larry Neal – this defining work of the Black Arts Movement is at once a rich anthology of 200 selections including poetry, essays, short stories, and plays from over 75 cultural critics, writers, and political leaders, that captures the social and cultural turmoil of the 1960s.
Pillars in Ethiopian History by William Leo Hansberry – the father of African Studies examines the myth and legend of Ethiopia, i.e. the Queen of Sheba legend, the origin and development of Ethiopian Christianity, medieval international relations, and the Prester John legend.
Africa & Africans As Seen by Classical Writers by William Leo Hansberry – examines classical references to the African continent and its people in the writings of Homer, Pliny, Ovid, Virgil, Herodotus and others in a lively and highly readable manner.
The Myth of Genesis and Exodus and the Exclusion of Their African Origin by Yosef A.A. ben-Jochannan – examines the origins of the Genesis and Exodus stories and traces them back to the myths and stories of ancient Africans, mainly the Egyptians.
Blood in My Eye – George Jackson –convicted of stealing $70 from a gas station at age 18 and sentenced from one year to life, the author spent seven of his last 11 years in solitary confinement, transforming himself into a political theoretician and activist, and died days after the completion of this book.
African People in World History – John Henrik Clarke – guides the reader along a narrative journey that spans from antiquity to present times.
Your History: From the Beginning of Time to the Present – J.A. Rogers
Survey Graphic (March 1925) Harlem, Mecca of the New Negro – Ed. Alain Locke
