Booker T. Washington And W. E. B. Du Bois

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African Americans experienced opposition and segregation throughout the middle to late 1800s. They were separated from the white population and given inferior treatment. Jim Crow laws contributed to this segregation. Jim Crow laws established racial segregation in public spaces such as parks, hospitals, schools, and transportation networks. Both Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois had ideas about how to improve the lives of African Americans; however, while Washington advocated starting at the bottom and working your way up, Du Bois had the opposite view, believing that African Americans should hold important positions in order to demand equal treatment. According to Booker T. Washington, for African Americans to eventually attain racial equality, they must be content with beginning out on the margins and gaining the respect required to be treated equally in society. African People overlooking the fact that the bulk of them make a living from what they can produce with their hands is, according to Washington, the biggest risk while transitioning from slavery to freedom. Washington makes this claim to bolster his main point, which is that if you can't gain the respect required for equality, jumping too early won't help. Washington continues, "No …show more content…

Du Bois' opinion, should strive for equality rather than be satisfied with being inferior. Du Bois thought that submitting to civil inferiority would ultimately lead to the annihilation of their race. According to Du Bois, embracing a lower status would roll back any strides achieved toward racial equality. Du Bois argued that by voluntarily reneging on rights, one is guaranteed to do so. This is what he says to make it crystal apparent that accepting lesser position for the time being demonstrates that unfair treatment is acceptable, ruining any chance for growth. Although increased quality of life was a shared aim, Du Bois and Washington had completely different approaches to achieving