Maria Cannon

9/30/16
Red Group
Booker T. Washington vs. W.E.B. DuBois Essay
This country is rife with differing views on racial equality, whether those views be new
or old. The differences of opinion between W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington are yet
another example of this. However in terms of racial equality in America in 2016, W.E.B. DuBois
clearly has the more applicable philosophy.
While Washington was a man to be immensely admired for all the progress he made in
Black rights, especially to do with education, his views seem underwhelming in light of racial
standing today. One would at least like to believe, that society has made enough progress in
racial equality that the necessary course of action is not to trade equality for education, as
Washington wished to do. Supposedly, there is considerably more equal education opportunities
for white students and students of color. I say supposedly because there is equal opportunities for
white students and students of color in this country in principle, but infrequently in practice.
Devastatingly there are still bigger fish to fry in terms of obtaining racial equality in
America. There is the fact that white police officers are walking away, penalty free after
murdering black men for compliance. Black lives still do not matter to the American
government, even though this country was built off the accomplishments of people of color.
Clearly there is not yet racial equality in this country, and more hurried measures are required
than the approach that Booker T. Washington advised.
This is where the ideas of DuBois come into play. Instead of advocating for certain rights
over say, the termination of segregation, Du Bois thought it was necessary for society to start
treating everyone with respect, no matter a person's skin color. His philosophy operated under
the idea that equality would never happen until America learned to treat all of its inhabitants like

Americans with constitutional rights and responsibilities. According to DuBois only then could
the country hope to operate successfully and functional, and not as an oppressor.
This is the only course of action that can begin to deal with the deep-seated prejudice and
bigotry that courses through almost half of white Americans (Krishnan 1). THis is something
that DuBois certainly understood, for he heavily critiqued Washington, despite DuBois respect
for the man. In any case, there is no longer enough time to trade in rights for other rights, not
when there is presidential candidate who seems to not completely understand racism. There isnt
enough time when the white perpetrator of a horrendous crime goes to jail for 3 months while
person of color who committed the same crime served the full and lawful life-long punishment.
There isnt time to take things slowly when a black man is shot by police for selling CDs. There
isnt enough time when little to nothing has been done by white people to end or even
acknowledge their privilege.
There is no denying that Booker T. Washington was a great thinker, with great ideas, and
really he was the leader that his time needed. But in America, today, in this racial climate, what
we need is the principles of DuBois. Americans can no longer be forced settle or bargain, instead
of getting what is fully theirs.

Works Cited
Krishnan, Manisha. "Dear White People, Please Stop Pretending Reverse Racism Is Real." Vice,
2 Oct. 2016, www.vice.com/read/dear-white-people-please-stop-pretending-reverse
-racism-is-real. Accessed 10 Oct. 2016.