I think about Carter G. Woodson a lot. Specifically, I think about what he would say if he could see the world we're living in right now.
He died in 1950. He never saw the Civil Rights Act. He never saw the internet. He never saw the democratization of the stock market. He never saw a world where a person with $50 and a smartphone could become a shareholder in some of the most profitable companies on earth.
He spent his entire life documenting the problem—the systematic miseducation that kept Black Americans economically dependent. He warned us about the mental chains that were stronger than physical ones. He showed us exactly how the system was designed to keep us as consumers instead of owners.
But he died before he could see the solution become accessible to everyday people.
And that breaks my heart, because the solution he was pointing toward is here. Right now. Available to anyone willing to learn it.
What Woodson Was Really Fighting For
Let's be clear about what Woodson's work was actually about. It wasn't just about education in the traditional sense. It wasn't just about reading and writing and arithmetic. It was about economic self-determination.
He wrote: "The so-called modern education, with all its defects, however, does others so much more good than it does the Negro, because it has been worked out in conformity to the needs of those who have enslaved and oppressed weaker peoples."
Read that carefully. The education system wasn't designed to liberate us. It was designed to make us useful to a system that benefited others. We were taught to be employees, not employers. Consumers, not producers. Workers, not owners.
But here's what Woodson understood that most people miss: the goal wasn't just to complain about the system. The goal was to build our own economic power within it or outside of it.
He advocated for Black-owned businesses. He pushed for economic cooperation. He wanted us to control our own economic destiny. But in his time, the barriers were enormous. Legal segregation. Discriminatory lending. Outright violence against Black economic success.
Those barriers still exist in some forms, but they're not what they used to be. And that's where the opportunity is.
The Dividend Investing Revolution
Here's what Woodson never got to see: the rise of dividend investing as a tool for economic liberation.
Let me explain why this matters so much.
In Woodson's time, if you wanted to build wealth, your options were limited. You could start a business (if you could get a loan, which most Black people couldn't). You could buy property (if you could get a mortgage, which redlining made nearly impossible). Or you could work and save (which, without investment vehicles, meant your money lost value to inflation).
The stock market existed, but it was largely inaccessible to everyday people, especially Black people. You needed a broker. You needed significant capital. You needed connections. For most Black Americans, it might as well have been on another planet.
But today? Today, you can open a brokerage account in 10 minutes. You can buy fractional shares of companies for $10. You can build a diversified portfolio of dividend-paying stocks with less money than you'd spend on a weekend out.
This is the revolution Woodson never lived to see. The barriers to ownership have collapsed.
Why Dividends Specifically?
Now, you might be thinking, "Jay, why are you so focused on dividends? Why not just invest in growth stocks or index funds?"
Great question. And here's my answer: because dividends are the clearest path from economic dependency to financial independence.
When you own dividend-paying stocks, you're not just hoping the stock price goes up so you can sell it later. You're getting paid regularly—monthly, quarterly—just for owning the shares. That's income. That's cash flow. That's the beginning of financial independence.
Let me give you a real example. Let's say you buy 100 shares of a company that pays a $0.50 quarterly dividend. That's $50 every quarter, or $200 a year, just for owning those shares. You didn't have to work for it. You didn't have to trade your time for it. You got paid because you're an owner.
Now, $200 a year isn't life-changing. But here's where it gets powerful: you take that $200 and buy more shares. Now you own 105 shares. Next quarter, you get $52.50. You reinvest that. Now you own 110 shares. You see where this is going?
This is called compounding, and it's how regular people build wealth. Not by hitting a home run. Not by finding the next Bitcoin. But by consistently owning profitable businesses that pay you to own them.
This is what Woodson would have been teaching if he'd lived to see this era. I'm convinced of it.
The Mental Shift That Changes Everything
But here's the thing Woodson understood better than almost anyone: the biggest barrier isn't access. It's mindset.
Even today, with all the tools available, most people don't invest. And when I ask why, I hear the same things over and over:
"I don't know how."
"It's too risky."
"That's for rich people."
"I don't have enough money to start."
"I'll do it later when I have more saved up."
Every single one of those statements is a product of miseducation. They're not facts. They're beliefs that were programmed into us. And they're the same beliefs that keep people economically dependent their entire lives.
Woodson wrote: "When you control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his actions."
If I can convince you that investing is too risky, you'll never invest. If I can convince you that it's too complicated, you'll never learn. If I can convince you that it's not for people like you, you'll never even try.
That's the miseducation. And breaking free from it is the first step toward financial independence.
What Would Woodson Do Today?
I think about this question all the time. If Carter G. Woodson were alive today, what would he be teaching?
I believe he'd be teaching exactly what I'm teaching. He'd be showing people how to use the tools that are now available. He'd be breaking down the mental barriers that keep people from building wealth. He'd be creating communities of people committed to economic self-determination.
He'd be running a mastermind group. He'd be writing books that connect the historical context to modern solutions. He'd be on Zoom calls every week teaching dividend investing strategies.
I'm not comparing myself to Woodson—his impact is legendary. But I am saying that the work he started is the work I'm continuing. The trilogy I wrote, The Financial Mis-Education of Black America, is my attempt to finish the conversation he started.
Book 1 (The Manifesto) exposes the problem, just like Woodson did. Book 2 (The Instructor Guide) gives you the tools to teach others. Book 3 (The Workbook) gives you the step-by-step plan to build your own dividend portfolio.
This is the curriculum for economic liberation that Woodson was pointing toward but never got to complete.
Your Role in This Movement
Here's what I need you to understand: this isn't just about you getting rich. This is about breaking a cycle that's been running for over 100 years.
Every person who learns to build wealth through ownership is one less person who's economically dependent. Every person who teaches their kids about dividend investing is one less generation that has to start from zero. Every person who builds a portfolio that generates passive income is one more person who can't be controlled by the threat of losing a job.
This is economic liberation. This is what Woodson was fighting for.
And the beautiful thing is, you don't need anyone's permission to start. You don't need to wait for the system to change. You don't need to hope that someone will finally give you a fair shot.
You can open a brokerage account today. You can buy your first dividend-paying stock this week. You can start building the financial independence that Woodson dreamed about but never got to see become accessible.
The Next 100 Years
Woodson published The Mis-Education of the Negro in 1933. That was 93 years ago. For nearly a century, his warning has been available for anyone willing to read it. And yet, the same patterns continue. The same economic dependency. The same miseducation.
But we're at a turning point. The tools for economic liberation are more accessible than they've ever been. The information is available. The barriers are lower than they've ever been.
The question is: will we use them?
Will the next 100 years look like the last 100 years? Or will we finally heed Woodson's warning and build the economic power he knew we were capable of?
I'm betting on the latter. I'm building the Wealth Builders Mastermind Group to make sure of it. I wrote the trilogy to give people the roadmap. I'm showing up every week to teach the strategies that work.
Because I believe Woodson was right about the problem. And I believe the solution he was pointing toward is finally within reach.
The only question left is: are you ready to grab it?