preview

The Difference Between Booker T. Washington And W. E. B. Dubois

Decent Essays

During the late 18th and early 19th century two very popular leaders, Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois, shared different strategies in gaining political and social equality for American Negroes. Booker T. Washington, educator and Civil Rights activist, strongly believed that by teaching industrial education and accepting segregation would allow African Americans to become accepted in white communities. After publicly presenting his philosophy in a speech known as the "Atlanta Compromise," an uproar broke out within different parts of African American communities. Du Bois, another highly respected activist, was amongst this group against Washington's ideas. In his essay "Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others," W.E.B. Du Bois critiques …show more content…

Du Bois however could not remain silenced because he felt the need to aware others of the flaws within Washington's plan. In his doctrine, Washington focused on industrial education rather than higher education for African Americans. According to Washington, by doing this African Americans would win the respect of whites since they could provide something that the whites highly demanded. Du Bois, on the other hand, points out that by having the Negro youth concentrate on industrial education, it deprived those with the possibility of becoming great leaders the proper education needed to fulfill their destiny. It was imperative to provide this type of education to the Negro youth because without educated leaders there would not be anyone to properly fight for the rights of future African American generations. Aside from asking African Americans to give up higher education, Washington also asked that they surrender their political and civil rights. He urged them to accept discrimination in hopes of becoming integrated into the white communities. This belief of African American assimilation lead to "the disfranchisement of the Negro" and established "a distinct status of civil inferiority for the Negro." Du Bois criticized Washington for advocating the submission and inferiority of American Negroes instead of fighting for their

Get Access