Compare And Contrast Dubois And Washington

Two men, two different sets of ideals, and yet despite their many disagreements, they accomplished tremendous advancements in the lives of the African American community. Both men worked unwaveringly against horrors of lynching and both strongly opposed racially motivated violence. Both DuBois and Washington can and were criticized for various aspects of their approaches, but it is an undeniable fact that they were both key figures in the advancement of African Americans, and their legacy and ideals are still visible even to this day. In this analysis, I will take an in-depth look at two of the most famous leaders of the black community and their two very different visions of the future. Although, both men shared many common ideas they sharply
Du Bois. Unlike Washington, Du, Bois, freely attended school with whites and attend Fisk University. He was a fervent believer that it was important to attain a good education as he said: “Ignorance is a cure for nothing.” It was during this time that he started to take a strong look at the deep troubles of American racism. On the troubling effects of racism on the African America community he wrote in his, in his book, The Souls of Black Folk, “One ever feels his twoness, -- an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body, whose strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder.” Du Bois entered Harvard University and in 1895 he became the first African-American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University. And it was while he was working as a professor at Atlanta University, W.E.B. Du Bois very publicly opposed Booker T. Washington's "Atlanta Compromise," in which Washington had said that vocational education for blacks was more valuable to them than social advantages like higher education or political office. Du Bois strongly criticized Washington for not demanding equality for African Americans, as were granted to them by the 14th Amendment. He believed that the time for acceptance was now as he said in his book, The Souls of Black Folk, “Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year. It is today that we fit ourselves for the greater usefulness of tomorrow. Today is the seed time, now are the hours of work, and tomorrow comes to the harvest and the playtime.” He also disagreed with Washington’s views on education. In stark contrast to