Clayborne Carson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Clayborne Carson
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Carson in 2017
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| Born | June 15, 1944 Buffalo, New York, U.S.
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| Education | University of California, Los Angeles (BA, MA, PhD) |
| Era | 20th century |
| Spouse(s) | Susan Ann Carson |
| Children | 2 |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Stanford University |
Clayborne Carson was born on June 15, 1944. He is an American professor who taught history at Stanford University. He also directed the Martin Luther King Jr., Research and Education Institute. Since 1985, he has led a special project. This project works to collect and publish the writings of Martin Luther King Jr..
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Early Life and Learning
Clayborne Carson was born in Buffalo, New York. His parents were Clayborne and Louise Carson. He grew up near Los Alamos, New Mexico. His father worked there as a security guard. Their family was one of the few African-American families in Los Alamos.
Carson says this experience made him interested in the Civil Rights Movement. He wanted to learn more about the Black community. He was fascinated by the movement and wanted to meet the people involved.
Joining the Civil Rights Movement
After high school, Carson went to the University of New Mexico. When he was 19, he met Stokely Carmichael at a student conference. Carmichael encouraged him to join the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. This march happened on August 28, 1963.
Carson joined the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). SNCC was a group of young people working for civil rights. At the March, Carson was amazed to see hundreds of thousands of African Americans. This was his first big step in the Civil Rights Movement.
He remembers the people he met there the most. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial that day. Carson says he doesn't remember the speech itself. The March was the only time Carson heard Dr. King speak in public.
College Years and Activism
In 1964, Carson moved to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He became more active in the civil rights struggle there. He changed his studies from computer programming to American History.
At UCLA, he earned his bachelor's, master's, and Ph.D. degrees. His Ph.D. paper was about Stokely Carmichael and SNCC. While studying, he also protested the Vietnam War. He often writes about how important everyday people were in the fight for African-American freedom.
Career and Contributions
Carson taught at Stanford University for over 40 years. He mainly taught U.S. History and African American History. He taught about Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, SNCC, and the Black Panther Party. These topics are all part of the Black struggle for civil rights.
He often appeared on radio and TV shows. He shared his knowledge on programs like Fresh Air and Good Morning America.
Writing and Research
Carson has written many books and articles about the Civil Rights Movement. He has also helped with documentaries and interviews. His first book, In Struggle: SNCC and the Black Awakening of the 1960s, won an award in 1982. He was also a historical advisor for the film Freedom on My Mind. This film was nominated for an Oscar in 1995.
In 1985, Coretta Scott King, Dr. King's wife, asked Carson to lead a special project. This project was to publish Dr. King's writings that had not been published before. Carson first said no because he saw himself as a SNCC person, not a King expert. SNCC and Dr. King sometimes had different ideas during the movement.
But Carson later agreed to lead the project. He said he would only do it if Dr. King's family did not control the works. Carson and his team spent over 20 years editing and publishing Dr. King's writings.
Carson retired from Stanford in 2020. In 2021, President Joe Biden nominated him to join a new group. This group is called the Civil Rights Cold Case Records Review Board.
Personal Life
Clayborne Carson married Susan Ann Beyer in 1967. She was a librarian and later became the managing editor for the King Papers Project. They live in Palo Alto, California. They have a daughter and a son.
Awards and Recognitions
Clayborne Carson has received many awards and honors for his work:
- Andrew Mellon Fellowship (1977)
- Fredrick Jackson Turner Award for his book In Struggle: SNCC and the Black Awakening of the 1960s (1982)
- Elected member of the Society of American Historians (1991)
- Honorary Doctorate from Pacific Graduate School of Psychology (1995)
- Part of the winning team for the design of the National Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington D.C. (2000)
- Gandhi King Ikeda Award from Morehouse College (2004)
- Honorary Doctorate from Morehouse College (2007)
- Honorary Doctorate from Niagara University (2008)
- Honorary Doctorate from Westminster College (2015)
