The Crisis

The Crisis was founded in 1910 as the official magazine for the NAACP. The founders were W.E.B. DuBois, Oswald Garrison Villard, J. Max Barber, Charles Edward Russell, Kelly Miller, William Stanley Braithwaite, and Mary Dunlop Maclean; W.E.B. DuBois served as the editor. Much of the initial funding for the NAACP was raised through sales of the magazine, in its first year it had a monthly circulation of 1,000, however by 1918 that number had rose to over 100,000.

W.E.B. DuBois one of the founders of the NAACP and The Crisis. He served as editor from 1910-1934

The magazine was originally intended to be much more of a political and news publication than a literary publication, however it had an undeniable impact on the Harlem Renaissance especially from 1918 to 1926 when Jessie Redmon Fauset served as literary editor. Many of the well known writers from the Harlem Renaissance were either first published in The Crisis or became popular after being featured. This includes Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Arthur Huff Fauset, Jean Toomer, James Weldon Johnson, Claude McKay, Effie Lee Newsome, Zora Neale Hurston, Gwendolyn Bennett, Arna Bontemps, Charles Chesnutt, Marita Bonner, and Walter White.

In addition to literature, art played an important role in The Crisis's overall message and function. DuBois was an advocate of the use of art to positively portray the African-American race. The arts were also used to capture current events. Political cartoons, illustrations and graphic photographs aligned with Du Bois' strong interest in social justice and in highlighting heinous crimes being committed against African Americans.

Children and education were two topics that mattered quite a bit to Du Bois, he believed the African-American population should be bred, raised and trained to become elite intellectual and political leaders. Much of his writing in the magazine reflected this. The Crisis magazine has played a major role in promoting the rise of African-American colleges and the rise of African-American studies, early on the magazine fostered an interest in higher education, reporting how black universities were operating financially and administratively.

Much of DuBois common concerns in his writings included promoting a positive, dignified, progressive image of African-American people; calling for action, social justice and an end to violence against blacks; and promoting good international relations, especially in regards to the Pan-African movement.

By the 1930s Du Bois was advocating a form of black separatism. This led to disputes between Du Bois and the NAACP, resulting in his resignation as editor in 1934. He was replaced by Roy Wilkins. The Great Depression effected the amount of paid subscriptions greatly, with less than 10,000.

Today the magazine is still in circulation with Lottie Joiner serving as the editor. The Crisis is the oldest operating African-American magazine in the world.

The covers of The Crisis from 1910-1935 are some of my favorite pieces of art, particularly those designed by Aaron Douglas, major in Harlem Renaissance influencers and one of my all time favorite artist. Here are a few of the covers designed by him: