Timothy Tyson facts for kids

Timothy B. Tyson, born in 1959, is an American writer and historian. He studies important topics like culture, religion, and race. He is especially known for his work on the Civil Rights Movement. He teaches at Duke University and the University of North Carolina.

His books have won many important awards. These include the Frederick Jackson Turner Award and the Grawemeyer Award in Religion. Two of his books, Radio Free Dixie and Blood Done Sign My Name, were even made into movies. One was also turned into a play!

In 2017, he wrote The Blood of Emmett Till. This book won the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award. It was also considered for the National Book Award.

Timothy Tyson's Early Life and Education

Timothy Tyson was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. His father, Vernon Tyson, was a minister. His mother, Martha Tyson, was a school teacher. When he was young, his family lived in Oxford, North Carolina.

His father supported the Civil Rights Movement. Because of this, he had to leave his church. This experience likely shaped Timothy's interest in history.

Tyson went to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He later earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Emory University in 1987. He then received his PhD in history from Duke University in 1994.

Timothy Tyson's Career as a Historian

Timothy Tyson began teaching at Duke University in 1994. This was while he was finishing his PhD. He was named a Research Fellow at Duke for his work. This work was later published in a book called Jumpin' Jim Crow.

In 1994, he became a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He also held a special fellowship at the National Humanities Center. In 2006, he received the Grawemeyer Award in Religion.

Teaching and Research

Today, Tyson is a Senior Research Scholar at Duke University. He works at the Center for Documentary Studies. He also teaches at the Duke Divinity School. There, he teaches about race, religion, and civil rights in the Southern United States. He also teaches at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In 2007, Tyson taught a special course. It was called "The South in Black and White." Students from Duke, North Carolina Central University, and UNC Chapel Hill attended. They met at the Hayti Heritage Center in Durham.

In 2008, he led another community course in Wilmington. This course explored how history can help people understand each other. Tyson also serves on important boards. These include the North Carolina NAACP and the UNC Center for Civil Rights.

Timothy Tyson's Books

Timothy Tyson has written several important books. These books often explore key moments in American history. They focus on issues of race and justice.

Democracy Betrayed: The Wilmington Race Riot of 1898

Tyson's first book was Democracy Betrayed. He co-edited it with David S. Cecelski. It was published in 1998. The book marked 100 years since the Wilmington insurrection of 1898. This event was a violent attack by white people on the Black community in Wilmington.

The book won an award for studying bigotry and human rights. In 2006, Tyson wrote an article about the Wilmington events. Soon after, North Carolina passed a law. This law requires schools to teach about the 1898 riot.

Radio Free Dixie: Robert F. Williams and Black Power

In 1998, Tyson wrote an article about Robert F. Williams. Williams was a civil rights leader. He had a radio program called Radio Free Dixie. The next year, Tyson published a book on Williams. It was titled Radio Free Dixie: Robert F. Williams and the Roots of Black Power.

This book won the Frederick Jackson Turner Prize. It also won the James A. Rawley Prize (OAH). These awards recognize important books on U.S. history and race. The book was later made into a documentary film. The film was called Negroes with Guns. Tyson was a main consultant for the film.

Blood Done Sign My Name

Tyson wrote Blood Done Sign My Name, published in 2004. This book tells the story of Henry Marrow. Marrow, a Black Army veteran, was killed by white men in Oxford, North Carolina, in 1970. The book explores how the Black community reacted when the suspects were found not guilty.

The book won the 2005 Southern Book Award. It was also a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. In 2010, the book was made into a movie.

The Blood of Emmett Till

In 2017, Tyson published The Blood of Emmett Till. This book re-examines the terrible lynching of Emmett Till in 1955. The book became a New York Times bestseller. It won the 2018 Robert F. Kennedy Book Award. It was also considered for the National Book Award.

Timothy Tyson and School Board Protest

On June 15, 2010, Timothy Tyson was arrested in Raleigh, North Carolina. He was protesting a decision by the Wake County school board. He protested with Rev. William Barber, who leads the North Carolina NAACP.

The school board changed its policy on student diversity. They decided students should attend schools closer to home. Tyson argued that this change could lead to schools being separated by race again.