author
George Edmund Haynes
1880–1960
A pioneering sociologist and social worker, he helped shape the National Urban League and pushed for practical solutions to the challenges Black Americans faced in rapidly growing cities. His life joined scholarship, public service, and civil rights work in ways that still feel strikingly modern.
1 Audiobook
The Negro at Work in New York City: A Study in Economic Progress
by George Edmund Haynes
About the author
Born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, in 1880, George Edmund Haynes came of age at a time when opportunities for Black Americans were sharply limited, yet he built an extraordinary academic career. He studied at Fisk University, earned a master's degree from Yale, and went on to become the first African American to receive a Ph.D. from Columbia University.
Haynes is best known as a co-founder and the first executive director of the National Urban League. His work focused on helping Black migrants and workers navigate housing, employment, and community life in northern cities during the Great Migration. Rather than separating research from action, he used sociology as a tool to improve everyday life.
He also served in the federal government, including work with the U.S. Department of Labor, and remained active in social reform for decades. Remembered as a careful scholar and a determined advocate, Haynes stands out as one of the early thinkers who helped turn social science into a force for public good.