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the cage, his inaction about the segregated civil service as a whole seems to suggest Wilson was not particularly
interested in the rights of blacks in the U.S. Indeed, this disinterest may even be attributed to something more
sinister when Du Bois notes that Wilson only nominated one black man to office and his nomination was an
insult to the Negro people (Du Bois, 447). This detail indicates Wilson might have been attempting to dis-
credit blacks and prove that they are unsuitable for white-collar jobs. In fact, Wilson was actually in favor of a
segregated civil service as he stated this in an interview to William Monroe Trotter (Du Bois, “My Impressions
of Woodrow Wilson”). In the same interview, Wilson also went on to state that “segregation is not a humilia-
tion but a benefit, and ought to be so regarded by you gentlemen” when addressing Monroe Trotter’s concerns
about the segregated civil service (Barnett, “Expunging Woodrow Wilson from Official Places of Honor”). Du
Bois’ writings on Wilson are quite unflattering, something that is in sharp contrast to the picture that high
school history curriculums paint.
High school history curriculums paint Wilson as this embodiment of American democratic ideals who
sought to ensure that democracy was a world-wide phenomenon. Yet Du Bois’ portrayal of Wilson is decid-
edly different as it shows Wilson to be a racist through his actions towards blacks in the civil service. Moving
past Du Bois’ personal assessments of Wilson, the accounting of Wilson’s interview with Monroe Trotter also
provides indisputable evidence that President Wilson firmly believed in segregation. This side of Wilson de-
tracts from the democratic crusader image that is so prevalent throughout history textbooks. Du Bois would be
appalled with this inaccurate image as it gives students the impression that President Wilson was a hero who
intended to spread democracy to the oppressed peoples of the world when, in reality, he was an avid segrega-
tionist and, thus, only believed in these democratic ideals for whites.
While Du Bois would be extremely horrified at what is called accurate history by the AP and IB programs,
much of his writing suggests that he would not be surprised by these inaccuracies which are presented in his-
tory textbooks. He states that “he [a student] would in all probability complete his education without any idea
of the part which the black race has played in America,” making note of the fact that racism has caused many
of blacks’ contributions to the country’s history to be erased (Du Bois, 205). This realization continues into
his writings on history in general as he notes “historical facts [about blacks] which are well-documented will
not be found in common histories” (Du Bois, “Missing Pages in American History”). Du Bois was very aware
of the fact that history is edited to show a certain perspective and that this editing would continue to influence
generations of students. This lack of surprise, however, is not to be interpreted as his resignation to these inac-
curacies. Instead, Du Bois was intent upon ensuring that he left an accurate record as evidenced by his many
writings on the subject of WWI. In fact, according to scholar Jennifer Keene, much of Du Bois’ WWI writings
seem to be centered on portions of the war’s history that would not be addressed by the conventional cur-
riculums so that “the white world would take notice of the central role Africa and black soldiers played in the
war” (Keene, “W.E.B. Du Bois and the Wounded World: Seeking Meaning in the First World War for African-
Americans”). Indeed, Du Bois compiled much of his research material on WWI because he sought to write a
book on blacks’ role in WWI called The Wounded World. Summarily, Du Bois’ writings on WWI demonstrate
his awareness that much of history will be edited to show a positive view of America but this awareness did
not cause him to become complacent with regard to the accuracy of his historical records.
Examining the AP and IB curriculums in contrast to Du Bois’ writings is significant as it highlights mas-
sive gaps in the curriculums. The two most advanced high school level historical programs in the U.S. are
not giving students a comprehensive understanding of WWI history from different perspectives. As the U.S.’s
involvement in this war was a turning point in our country’s history, the lack of accuracy undermines the
programs’ purpose. The AP United States History (APUSH) web page states that students should “Learn to
weigh evidence and interpretations as you build your factual knowledge of U.S. history,” but the students are
not given access to other interpretations of President Wilson and problematic race relations during WWI are
not even addressed through the course of either programs’ curriculums (“AP United States History”). As such,
there is no way for the students to form an accurate, fact-based understanding of U.S. history without even be-
ing exposed to other viewpoints.
Yet, there are still school boards that protest, such as the Jefferson County school board in Colorado, that
the AP curriculum focuses on the more negative aspects of American history and that the curriculum needs to
be changed to give students a pro-American outlook (Lane, “What the AP U.S. History Fight in Colorado Is
Really About”). As such, recent changes to the APUSH curriculum have been made so the curriculum reflects
a more positive view of America, something that further limits the students from gaining a critical understand-
ing of American history (Massey, “New AP U.S. History Standards from College Board - ”). While
the IB program’s curriculum has not come under the same scrutiny as the AP program’s curriculum has, it is
important to note that Du Bois’ belief that history would be used as a method of propaganda has become a
self-fulfilling prophecy. While he avidly sought to prevent this from happening, his writings indicate that he
understood that it would eventually happen. Du Bois’ careful cataloging of blacks’ role in WWI and President
Wilson’s racism shows that the AP and IB U.S. history curriculums are not wholly accurate when it comes to
their portrayal of WWI history. Instead, students are not being taught accurate history, they are being taught