William Loren Katz (June 2, 1927 – October 25, 2019)[1] was an American teacher, historian, and author of 40 books on African-American history, including a number of titles for young adult readers.
[5] He served as a consultant to the U.S. Senate, the British House of Commons, and the Smithsonian Institution; the state boards of education of North Carolina and New York; school districts from California to Florida and England.
[2][3][6] He was married to Dr. Laurie Lehman, an associate professor of special education in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Long Island University's Brooklyn Campus, and an early authority and writer on disability studies.
Katz's "Education and Books" column appeared in the New York Daily Challenge;[5] contributed articles to the Amsterdam News and many other publications; he hosted an interview program on Pacifica Radio station WBAI-FM in New York, and appeared on many TV and radio programs hosted by Indigenous Americans and African Americans.
[8] John Hope Franklin, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., John Henrik Clarke, Howard Zinn, James M. McPherson, Alice Walker, Cornel West, Ivan Van Sertima, Betty Shabazz, and Dr. Ralph Bunche have praised his works.