W. E. B. Dubois And Race Relations In The Gilded Age

Despite the fact that slavery ended, race relations in the Gilded age were in poor condition. In most aspects of public life, African Americans had been allowed to make little progress from 1870-1900. This fact directly influenced progressive age activists, such as W.E.B DuBois, in their efforts to advance their lives socially and politically. The Gilded age is define as the time between about 1870 and 1900. During this time African Americans were given the right to vote, if you were male, and citizenship. However, the federal government and state governments limited these right in every they legally could. States cheated black voters in a variety of ways, from poll taxes, to holding white-only primary elections, to unreasonably difficult

Ferguson, decided that “separate but equal” accommodations were legal and not a type of discrimination. The Gilded age also saw the exponential growth of the KKK which operated all over the country with little fear of legal retribution. The Gilded age was not a promising time for African Americans(O’Connor lecture 1-19-18). Social inequality was a considerable issue that needed to be addressed in the progressive era. W.E.B DuBois, a Harvard educated civil rights activist, wrote in a letter to president Woodrow Wilson that “...a determination on the part of intelligent and decent Americans to see that no man is denied a reasonable chance for life, liberty, and happiness simply because of the color of his skin is simple, sane and practical solution of the race problem in this land. The education of colored children, the opening of the gates of industrial opportunity to colored workers, absolute equality of all citizens before

At his famous Niagara Movement speech in 1905, DuBois said “...with the right to vote goes everything: Freedom, manhood, the honor of your wives, the chastity of your daughters, the right to work, and the chance to rise, and let no man listen to those who deny this”(DuBois). This speech was made at the first meeting of the Niagara Movement, which was an organization campaigning for civil rights. In this speech he is calling for an end to discrimination and for their civil rights to be recognized. Much like the letter to President Woodrow Wilson, he is calling for action to be taken immediately. These two document are similar in that they both want action to be taken and they want it done as soon as possible. DuBois makes it very clear that the fact that the Gilded age did not change any aspect of African Americans’ status, socially and politically, was unacceptable and it was time for that to change. Even though they were presented on different occasions to different audiences, the messages are very similar. They both want