Jesse Max Barber
Encyclopedia
Jesse Max Barber was an African American
journalist, teacher and dentist.
Born to former slave parents, Jesse Max Barber was educated at Benedict College
and Virginia Union University
, where he was student editor of the University Journal and president of the Literary Society. After graduation in 1903 he began working for the Voice of the Negro, a monthly literary magazine founded in 1904 in Atlanta, eventually becoming its editor-in-chief. Barber, one of the founders of the Niagara Movement
in 1905, sought out younger and more radical black writers for the Voice. By 1906 the Voice was the leading black magazine in the United States, with a circulation of 15,000. After the Atlanta Riots in 1906, Barber faced threats from white vigilantes and was forced to flee to Chicago
. There he was unable to secure financial backing for his magazine, and Voice of the Negro folded in 1907. Barber's radicalism had made an enemy of Booker T. Washington
, whose interventions caused Barber to lose jobs as a newspaper editor in Chicago and as a teacher in Philadelphia. To escape Washington's influence, in 1909 Barber retrained at the Philadelphia Dental School and on graduation in 1912 he set up a Philadelphia dental practice.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
journalist, teacher and dentist.
Born to former slave parents, Jesse Max Barber was educated at Benedict College
Benedict College
Benedict College is a historically black, liberal arts college located in Columbia, South Carolina. Founded in 1870 by northern Baptists, it was originally a teachers' college. It has since expanded into a four-year college.-History:...
and Virginia Union University
Virginia Union University
Virginia Union University is a historically black university located in Richmond, Virginia, United States. It took its present name in 1899 upon the merger of two older schools, Richmond Theological Institute and Wayland Seminary, each founded after the end of American Civil War by the American...
, where he was student editor of the University Journal and president of the Literary Society. After graduation in 1903 he began working for the Voice of the Negro, a monthly literary magazine founded in 1904 in Atlanta, eventually becoming its editor-in-chief. Barber, one of the founders of the Niagara Movement
Niagara Movement
The Niagara Movement was a black civil rights organization founded in 1905 by a group led by W. E. B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter. It was named for the "mighty current" of change the group wanted to effect and Niagara Falls, the Canadian side of which was where the first meeting took...
in 1905, sought out younger and more radical black writers for the Voice. By 1906 the Voice was the leading black magazine in the United States, with a circulation of 15,000. After the Atlanta Riots in 1906, Barber faced threats from white vigilantes and was forced to flee to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. There he was unable to secure financial backing for his magazine, and Voice of the Negro folded in 1907. Barber's radicalism had made an enemy of Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington
Booker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
, whose interventions caused Barber to lose jobs as a newspaper editor in Chicago and as a teacher in Philadelphia. To escape Washington's influence, in 1909 Barber retrained at the Philadelphia Dental School and on graduation in 1912 he set up a Philadelphia dental practice.