50. Stokely Carmichael (1941-1998) Carmichael was a civil rights leader that pushed black power idea within the the civil rights movement. He was the chairman SNCC.

49. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) many of Freud’s theories are discredited, but his work on coping mechanisms will stand the test of time. He wrote Civilization and its Discontents.

48. Nikki Giovanni (1943-Present) Giovanni is a poet, writer, and teacher. She wrote a collection of essays called Sacred Cows…and Other Edibles.

47. Mark Twain (1835-1910) twain (Samuel Clemens) was an anti racist that wrote a classic novel which showed how ridiculous slavery and racism were. He wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

46. Lorraine Hansberry (1930-1965) Hansberry wrote a play that questioned whether it was okay to become rich at the cost of the health of one’s community. That play was “A Raisin in the Sun.”

45. Kenneth Clark (1914-2005) Clark helped to show the affect of slavery and prolonged oppression on the perception of the oppressed groups. Clark wrote Dark Ghetto.

44. James Baldwin (1924-1987) Baldwin was a novelist, playwright, essayist, and activist for human rights. He is most known for his book Go Tell It on The Mountain.

43. Henry Louis Gates Jr. (1950-Present) Gates is a scholar that fights for African-American works to be included in American academia. He headed the project compiling the Africana Encyclopedia.

42. Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) Brooks wrote poetry about urban citizens in their ordinary lives. She wrote A Street in Brownsville, among other books.

41. Abraham H. Maslow (1908-1970) Maslow was a psychologist that believed that everyone could achieve mental health if all of their needs were met. He developed The Hierarchy of Needs.

40. Ralph Ellison (1914-1994) Ellison was a teacher and author of one of the greatest American novels. He wrote Invisible Man.
39. Richard Wright (1908-1960) Wright wrote about the mental pressures put upon black people in the United States. He wrote Native Son.

38. John Steinbeck (1902-1968) Steinbeck presented the rural community to everyone in his literature. He wrote Grapes of Wrath.
37. Kurt Vonnegut (1922-2007) Vonnegut exposed the horrors of imperialism through his science fiction and satirical novels. He wrote Slaughter House Five.

36. Socrates (496-399 BC) Socrates was a great philosopher. He taught that an unexamined life was not worth living. Some of Socrates’ teachings can be found in “The Apology.”
35. Stephen Crane (1871-1900) Crane gave realistic portrayals of poor people in the United States. He wrote Red Badge of Courage.
34. Tracy Chapman (1964-Present) Chapman is a song writer and singer that creates songs about social issues. Chapman’s most popular songs are “Fats Car” and “Give Me One Reason.”
33. Vine Deloria Jr. (1933-2005) Deloria was an activist for the almost extinct native peoples to the United states territory. He wrote Custer Died for Your Sins.
32. Walt Whitman (1819-1892) Whitman was a Brooklyn poet that focused on the natural parts of urban life. He wrote Leaves of Grass.
31. Walter Mosley (1952-present) Mosley is a prolific author and political thinker. He is most noted for his mysteries featuring the protagonist Easy Rollins.
30. W. E. B. Dubois (1868-1963) Dubois was a social activist and scholar. He encouraged Africans in the United States to pursue intellectual heights. Dubois wrote The Souls of Black Folk.

29.Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) Dickinson was a great poet known for a large number of short poems. Her works are found in many anthologies and books like Poems by Emily Dickinson.

28. Charles Dickens (1812-1870) Dickens wrote about the under class within empire. He is most known for his story “A Christmas Carol.”
27. Chinua Achebe (1930-Present) Achebe is a Nigerian Author that raises the issue of what a native should embrace from strange cultures and what natives should reject. He wrote Things Fall Apart.

26. Oscar Schindler (1908-1974) Schindler was able to improve his humanity under the Nazi regime of Germany. He developed Schindler’s List.
25. Noam Chomsky (1928-Present) Chomsky is an internationally known linguist. He proved that we are born with linguistic ability rather than a linguistic blank slate. Chomsky wrote many books including The Prosperous Few and the Restless Many.
24. Phyllis Wheatley (1753-1784) Wheatley was an African poet in the United States during The Revolutionary War. She wrote “Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral.”
23. Siddhartha Gautama “Buddha” (563-483 BC) Siddhartha decided that he could not live the comfortable life of a prince while so many others suffered. He developed The Four Noble Truths.

22. Leonard Jeffries (1937-Present) Jeffries is a professor and scholar in the subject of history. He is still lecturing at CUNY at City College.
21. Langston Hughes (1902-1967) Hughes was a one writer of the Harlem Renaissance. He is famous for his poetry. The most famous of which is “Harlem”.
20. Malcolm Gladwell (1967-Present) Gladwell is a brilliant social analyst and author. He recently wrote Outliers.
19. Carl Jung (1875-1961) Jung studied the psychosis of the modern man. He wrote many books including The Portable Jung.

18. John Dewey (1859-1952) Dewey was an educator that gave the foundation of a type of education that has been abandoned. He wrote Experience and Education.

17. George Washington (1789-1797) Washington was a general and politician. He understood that the Africans in the United States had to be freed with the ability to take care of themselves, then left alone to do it. Washington wrote a legendary last will and testament.
16. Harriet Tubman (1820-1913) Tubman was an escaped slave that went back to free other slaves through what was called the Underground Railroad. One of her great quotations is “I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves.”
15. Franz Kafka (1883-1924) Kafka was one of the great authors of any time. He wrote realistic literature about human mature to be found in The Kafka Reader.      14. Howard Zinn (1922-present) Zinn is a historian that studies and presents the view of the conquered as well as the conquerors. He wrote A People’s History of the United States.
13. John Henrik Clarke (1915-1998) Clarke was a historian that studied the contributions of Africa to humanity. He wrote African People in World History.
12. Albert Einstein (1879-1955) Einstein was a great scientist mostly known for his Theory of Relativity. He was also anti-nuclear war and pro civil rights. Einstein wrote Ideas and Opinions.
11. August Wilson (1945-2005) Wilson was a dramatist who wrote some of the best plays for the stage ever written. His most famous play was “Fences.”
10. Benjamin Franklin (1706- 1790) Franklin was a publisher, scientist, founder, etc. He started the first public library in the United States. Franklin wrote The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.
9. Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) Washington was the founder of Tuskegee Institute. He wrote Up From Slavery.
8. Cornel West (1953-present) West is a theologian and social activist. He teaches at Princeton University. West’s latest book is Hope on a Tightrope.
7. Dalai Lama - the Dalai Lama is a spiritual leader that is living under exile from China be their government. He wrote How to See Yourself As You Really Are.
6. Erik Erikson (1902-1994) Erikson was a psychologist that studied the stages of human development from birth to death. He wrote The Erikson Reader.
5. Aisha (605-678) Aisha was a wife of the Prophet Muhammad (May He Rest in Peace). She helped to write the Hadith. 
4. Akhenaten (1352-1336 BC) Akhenaten elevated the sun god Aten over all other gods creating a monotheistic reign. He wrote “Poem Of Praise To The Sun.” 
3. Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) Douglass was a run away slave that became a famous orator. He wrote Autobiography of Frederick Douglass.
2. George Orwell (1903-1950) Orwell was a great author. He wrote the Prophetic 1984.
1. Mary McLeod Bethune (1875-1955) Bethune created a school in a house with a few girls, now called Bethune-Cookman College. She wrote and presented “What Does America Democracy Mean to Me.”