Joel Simpson

Blue Group

Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois Essay

Both Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois had beliefs and motives on helping

African Americans move up in the social and economic classes, however, Washington’s ideas

and strategies were not very strong, they were more about Blacks accepting that they were in the

lower class, and trying to work their way out of it, through a long process of labor. Du Bois's

ideas were much stronger. They included protesting, political action, and steps to bring about

social and political change.

During Booker T. Washington’s Atlanta exposition address, he said, “Cast it down in

agriculture, mechanics, in commerce, in domestic service, and in the professions. And in this

connection it is well to bear in mind that whatever other sins the South may be called to bear,

when it comes to business, pure and simple, it is in the South that the Negro is given a man's

chance in the commercial world, and in nothing is this Exposition more eloquent than in

emphasizing this chance (Booker T. Washington).” By saying this, Washington meant that the

negroes should give into their civil and racial equality, and not necessarily fight through it, but to

suck it up. He wanted the Negroes to work their way up to equality through labor, agriculture,

etc., as opposed to protesting, and causing a flat out civil rights movement.

W.E.B. Du Bois had a much different idea of approaching the social inequality. He

wanted to do it through protesting, civil rights movements, advocating for the right to vote, and

education. A quote from “Up From Slavery” states, “ In answer to this, it has been claimed that
the Negro can survive only through submission. However, this might have caused the white

people to get angry and think that the Negroes didn’t deserve equality or change. Mr.

Washington distinctly asks that black people give up, at least for the present, three things,—

First, political power, Second, insistence on civil rights, Third, higher education of Negro

youth,— and concentrate all their energies on industrial education, the accumulation of wealth,

and the conciliation of the South (W.E.B. Du Bois).” By this, Du Bois is saying that instead of

giving into the white people and “asking that blacks give up”, and trying to gain respect by labor,

Blacks should focus on gaining political power, insisting civil rights (through protesting). He

also feels that Negro children should be getting the same education as white children. “Black

boys need education as well as white boys (W.E.B. Du Bois).”

In today’s society, Washington wouldn’t have made an impact, but Du Bois would have.

Du bois would’ve made an impact because the way he wanted to go about change were very

similar to the ways we go about change today. We still protest today, and people are still fighting

for racial equality. Pretty much anything that will get your voice heard works today. Whereas

Washington’s idea of not protesting, and trying to work your way up wouldn’t work today

because there wouldn’t be a point of changing anything since the Negroes would seem “content”

with their lives if they were working and not making a sound.

Booker T.Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois both had very different ideas on what the

greatest impediment to racial equality was. W.E.B. Du Bois knew that the government was full

of white men who were against change, but he didn’t want to quietly go to war. He wanted

Negroes to fight for economic power, education, and political power, so that the government

wouldn’t be full of white men, and there would be a chance for change. Washington was

different. Washington believed that the Negroes needed to go about the change towards racial
equality slowly, and what was holding them back from getting it was the fact that the whites

were not used to it. “As soon as the South gets over the old feeling that it is being forced by

"foreigners," or "aliens" (Booker T. Washington).” He knew that it would take a while for the

government to be able to deal with the idea of racial inequality since it wasn’t something they

really liked.

Works Cited:

-Francis, Erik Max. "The Atlanta Exposition address." Up from slavery, alcyone, 21

Jan. 2017, www.alcyone.com/max/lit/slavery/xiv.html. Accessed 22 Oct. 2017.

"Vital Signs." Frontline, edited by Michael Kirk, PBS, www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/

frontline/shows/race/economics/vital.html. Accessed 22 Oct. 2017.

Du Bois, W.E.B. "Chapter III. Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others."

Bartleby, www.bartleby.com/114/3.html. Accessed 22 Oct. 2017.

Rubric rating submitted on: 11/2/2017, 2:39:00 PM by marc.i.grossman@mcpsmd.net

10 8.5 7.5 6 5

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