Washington and Dubois Case

Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois were both prominent figures of the late nineteenth century early twenty who guided the way in the African American struggle for equality. However, both leaders birth, upbringing, and education made a major impact on their thoughts and what they came to believe. Booker T. Washington believed that African Americans should focus on economic and social improvements, and political rights will come along. Dubois, on the other hand, believed that African Americans should have a chance in higher education and fight for their civil rights. They shouldn't wait until economic equality is reached for those rights to be granted.

Booker T. Washington was born five years before the Civil War. Born as a slave, he felt the lash of an overseer across his back. Washington's mother was a cook and his father was a white man with unknown identity. Washington had to work on different plantations such as carrying out water to workers in the field, take corn to the mill, and other jobs that were asked of him. He slept on a dirt floor on bundles of rags. As he grew up, he attended a local school to earn an education but at the same time he was also working. In 1872, he attended Hampton Institute where he learned but had to work as a janitor to pay for his tuition. Hampton Institute was a vocational training school for blacks and here they learned to take pride in their work. Attending this school has led Washington to find one of the most prestigious educational institutions Tuskegee Institute. Growing up a slave, Washington came to believe that black people would surely advance if they would learn skills and demonstrate a willingness to do manual labor. As a child, being a slave and poor with no respect, Washington believed that if black people acquired skills and became prosperous small farmers, artisans, and shopkeepers, as time progressed they would earn the respect and acceptance of white Americans. He believed that overtime the race problem would eradiate without protest and agitation, if blacks were willing to demonstrate their skills and gain acceptance.

W.E.B. Dubois grew up living in a white New England Town, Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Dubois was black, French, and Dutch. He was born free and encountered little racism at a young age. Soon he developed a love for knowledge. Dubois graduated from Great Barrington High School. However, at this time it was unusual for many whites and blacks to attend more than primary school. Because of his passion for knowledge, he headed south to attend Fisk University in Nashville. Later in Harvard, Dubois became the first black man to earn a Ph. D in history. He also went to Germany to do further studies. Being accepted into society at a young age, Dubois was "impatient with white people who accepted or ignored white domination. He had little tolerance for black people who were unwilling to demand their civil and political rights." Unlike Washington,