Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man

The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, written by James Weldon Johnson and first published anonymously in 1912, is a fictional memoir of a biracial narrator navigating his identity in the South during the Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction eras. The story explores the narrator's initial belief that he was white and the profound shift in his self-perception when confronted with the realities of racial identity. Although it garnered little attention upon its initial release, Johnson republished the novel in 1927, claiming authorship and bringing it into the literary spotlight. This work is notable for its exploration of race and identity in early 20th-century America.