Who was Booker T. Washington?

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 ïontinued͙.
Washington was born into slavery to Jane, an enslaved African American
woman on the Burroughs Plantation in southwest Virginia. He knew little
about his white father. His family gained freedom in 1865 as the ïivil War
ended. As a boy he claimed the surname Washington when all the other
school children were giving their full names. He worked in salt furnaces
and coal mines in West Virginia for several years then made his way east
to Hampton Institute, a school established to educate freedmen, where he
worked to pay for his studies. He later attended Wayland Seminary to
complete preparation as an instructor. In 1881, Hampton president ,
Samuel ï. Armstrong recommended Washington to become the first
leader of Tuskegee Institute, in Alabama. He headed it for the rest of his
life.
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Ä Washington was a dominant figure of the African-American community in
the United States from 1890 to 1915, especially after his Atlanta Address
of 1895. To many politicians and the public in general, he was seen as a
popular spokesman for African-American citizens. Representing the last
generation of black leaders born into slavery, Washington was generally
received as a credible proponent of education for freedmen in the post-
Reconstruction, Jim ïrow-era South. Throughout the final 25 years of his
life, he maintained his standing through a nationwide network of
supporters-including black educators, ministers, editors, and
businessmen-especially those who were liberally inclined on social and
educational issues. He gained access to top national leaders in politics,
philanthropy and education, raised large sums, was consulted on race
issues and was awarded honorary degrees from leading American
universities.
 The Atlanta Exposition Address
Ä On September 18, 1895, Booker T. Washington spoke before a
predominantly white audience at the ïotton States and International
Exposition in Atlanta. His address was one of the most important and
influential speeches in American history. Whether you agree with all,
some or none of the speech, it no doubt served as an outline of how race
relations could be improved in the post-slavery South. In this speech he
preached that in order to gain understanding from whites, African
American would have to concentrate on creating economic security by
improving their skills. He preached the importance of an education and
that no African American should be denied of it. Instead of hatred
between blacks and whites, they should work together and make
American a better place. He told African Americans that they should stop
trying to achieve political equality. Even though he did say this, he still
believes that African Americans should have the right to vote because
with this they can learn self-government. He was trying to show them
that his people are still going to work in fields Build their railroads, and
continue to make America what it has become; all it takes is just giving
them a chance.
 ïontinued͙.
Ä In Booker T. Washington͛s address he makes an effort to inspire Blacks in an
attempt to help them have an influence upon and rise in society. His address
came many years after the ïivil War was over; however, Blacks were still
suffering from many of the same injustices which they had been decades
before. Washington is attempting to encourage his people and help them
improve their lives. He starts out by giving us a useful analogy; we are told of
a ship to give them some water, to which they reply ͞cast down your bucket
where you are,͟ as they fill it with fresh water. Washington advises Blacks to
not underestimate the importance of forging relationships with whites, and to
follow the lead of the lost vessel by casting their bucket in making friends. He
is advocating that Blacks avoid discriminating who they deal with, and to make
friends ͞in every manly way of the people of all races.͟ He goes on to say that
Blacks should not overlook the fact that many within their race will make their
living through labor, or ͞the productions of our hands͟ and that a wide variety
of professions should be considered, including agriculture, mechanics,
commerce and domestic service. He advises that common labor should be
dignified and glorified, not frowned upon.
 ïontinued͙.
Ä I think its important that Washington makes a passionate point in saying that
many of the ͞common occupations of life͟ are still extremely important, and
that working in these jobs involves intelligence and skills that are essential in
influencing society. He goes as far as to say that ͞no race can prosper till it
learns that there is as much dignity in tilling a field as in writing a poem,͟ and I
think this is significant at a time when many Blacks could not get jobs other
than these common occupations. I agree with his assessment about the fate
of young African Americans; in that they should overcome their situations
through education and not protest and anger towards society because of
slavery. `He is saying that people should not only be content, but that they
should do the best they can with what they have and embrace it. This section
of Washington͛s Address is very powerful and inspiring. It came at a time
when many Blacks were undoubtedly lacking confidence that they could
influence society, or move up within it. He was trying to lift his people up with
his words by telling them to embrace all opportunities and races, and to make
the best out of whatever comes their way. Instead of looking at common jobs
as meaningless, look at them instead as an opportunity to use the skills and
knowledge you have. At the same time, he tells Whites to do the same, and to
embrace his people for all the good they can provide.
 ïontinued͙.
Ä Overall Booker T. Washington longed for equality but believed in hard
work and self-help. He believed Blacks would gain the acceptance they
desired through improving their skills and proving themselves through
their labors. He believed that would earn far more respect from the
whites than protests and speeches. This speech did not only serve as a
foundation of the role of blacks in the new south, but also for the whites.
Washington͛s strong symbolic speech showed that the white race needed
the black race and vice versa in order for each to survive and thrive.
Unfortunately, there have been and still are racial problems in our country
between blacks and whites, but we should look no further than the
inspiring speech from Mr. Booker T. Washington to understand that only
through working together to help each other will the land we live in
continue to grow and thrive.
 Honors and Memorials
Ä For his contributions to American society, Washington was granted an
honorary master͛s degree from Harvard University in 1896 and an
honorary doctorate from Dartmouth ïollege in 1901.
Ä Washington, as the guest of President Theodore Roosevelt in 1901, was
the first African-American ever invited to the White House. At the end of
the 2008 presidential election, the defeated Republican candidate,
Senator John Mcïain, referred to Washington͛s visit to the White House a
century before as the seed that blossomed into the first African American
becoming the President of the United States, Barack Obama.
Ä In 1934 Robert Russa Moton, Washington͛s successor as president of
Tuskegee University, arranged an air tour for two African American
aviators, and afterward the plane was christened the Booker T.
Washington.
 ïontinued͙.
:In 1942, the Liberty Ship Booker T. Washington was named in his honor, the
first major oceangoing vessel to be named after an African American. The
ship was christened by Marian Anderson.
:On April 7, 1940, Washington became the first African American to be
depicted on a United States postage stamp. The first coin to feature an
African American was Booker T. Washington Memorial Half Dollar that was
minted by the United States from 1946 to 1951. He was also depicted on
a United States Half Dollar from 1951-1954.
:On April 5, 1956, the hundredth anniversary of Washington͛s birth, the house
where he was born in Franklin ïounty, Virginia, was designated as the
Booker T. Washington National Monument. A state park in ïhattanooga,
Tennessee was named in his honor, as was a bridge spanning the Hampton
River adjacent to his alma mater, Hampton University.
 ïontinued͙.
Ä In 1984 Hampton University dedicated a Booker T. Washington Memorial
on campus near the historic Emancipation Oak, establishing in the words
of the University, ͞a relationship between one of America͛s great
educators and social activists, and the symbol of Black achievement in
education.͟
Ä Numerous high schools, middle schools and elementary schools across the
United States have been named after Booker T. Washington.
Ä At the center of the campus at Tuskegee University, the Booker T.
Washington Monument, called ͞Lifting the Veil,͟ was dedicated in 1922.
The inscription at its base reads:
͞He lifted the veil of ignorance from his people and pointed the way to progress through
education and industry.͟