The Myth of The Negro PastAuthor Contributor(s): Herskovits, Melville Publisher: Beacon Press Date: 3 1 1990 Binding: Paperback Condition: NEW Almost fifty years ago Melville Herskovits set out to debunk the myth that black Americans have no cultural past. Originally published in 1941, his unprecedented study of black history and culture recovered a rich African heritage in religious and secular life, the language and arts of the Americas.