African Americans In Meridian Speech Analysis

For starters, by using repetition and metaphor in his speech, Booker T. Washington informs his audience concerning the importance of collaboration between the white and black races during the process of developing and growing the economic conditions of the South. For instance, in the third paragraph of the address, Washington mirrors a crucial state on the ocean. The crew of the lost ship almost lost their lives as a result of the lack of water, but later get told to drop down the bucket and get some water by a friendly ship, “And a third and fourth signal for water was answered. ‘Cast down your bucket where you are.’ The captain of the distressed vessel, at last heeding the injunction, cast down his bucket, and it came up full of fresh, sparkling water from the mouth of the Amazon River” (Washington 450). Also, by metaphorically referring that particular situation he portrays to the reality that

Booker T. Washington believed that blacks should not push to attain equal civil and political rights with whites. That it was best to concentrate on improving their economic skills and the quality of their character. The burden of improvement resting squarely on the shoulders of the black man. Eventually they would earn the respect and love of the white man, and civil and political rights would be accrued as a matter of course. This was a very non-threatening and popular idea with a lot of whites.

Dubois said, “Mr. Washington distinctly asks that black people give up, at least for the present, three things, --First, political power, second, insistence on civil rights, third, higher education of Negro youth, and concentrate all their energies on industrial education, and accumulation of wealth, and the conciliation of the South.” Washington believed that the blacks could not move forward without giving up political power, civil rights, and higher education. He thought they had to give up those ideas for now and focus on wealth, industrial education and be friendly with the south. He thought once these objects were accomplished then the blacks could obtain the freedom and rights they wanted. Therefore, he felt that for now the color-line was ok because blacks needed to first earn their rights before they were handed over to them.

Washington was often looked at as an “Uncle Tom” because of the things he did, such as advising blacks to remain in the South and to avoid politics and protest in favor of economic self-help and industrial education. He eventually became a powerful political boss, friend of white businessmen like Andrew Carnegie, and advisor of some presidents. Washington publicly accepted without protest racial segregation and voting discrimination, but secretly financed and directed many court suits against such proscriptions of civil rights. To Washington his ideas was obvious and clear, by earning the respect of whites they would either help blacks or deal with their crime against humanity that will eventually bring them down.

Booker T. Washington’s philosophy and actions betrayed the interests of African Americans because he was more interested on the blacks getting educated and getting the respect of the white authorities, instead of worrying on getting their political and social equality right away, which was the main interest of the African Americans. In “The Atlanta Exposition Address”, Washington said that blacks would sacrifice their civil rights and social equality for the time being, as long as whites guaranteed that they would receive industrial education and jobs because he believed that in order to fully obtain equality, the blacks should improve themselves. “It is at the bottom of

Booker T. Washington’s Atlanta Compromise Address is one of the most truthful and powerful speeches of our countries history. Although it was very short it was so powerful because of his great tone and rhetoric. His explained himself so well saying that African Americans shouldn’t try things they didn’t know how to do. They needed to learn the skills and that those skills would take time. They needed to stick to what they knew and build upon it so that their posterity may prosper. He also mentioned that whites need to change with adversity and accept what was happening at this time and try to work with the blacks instead of being stubborn and not. They needed to accept that blacks were defiantly like family when they were slaves. If both races overcame what they faced the country would become better and be a

It was during the Recreation Period when the rights of the blacks were not the same as the whites and made their lives difficult. Segregation was very common at the time. It affected many of the black society, including Booker T. Washington. He was a major contributor to the end of segregation, and in 1895, he delivered the Atlanta Compromise Speech. He believed that with the hard work of the blacks, that they would earn and gain the respect of the esteemed whites. The main idea of The Atlanta Compromise Speech was that blacks should obtain social responsibility and need to work from the bottom to top to achieve this. Booker T. Washington’s speech was given to persuade the citizens to end the idea of segregation and promote cooperation

Booker T. Washington delivers the 1895 Atlanta Compromise Speech to a white and black audience about the equality blacks and whites deserve. As a black speaker in the north, Washington influences and impresses many of the northern citizens with his moving speech. Washington brought with him “...evidence of racial progress in the South”. His audience contained the president and the board of directors as well as citizens.

One could believe Washington would speak the same to a black audience simply because the ideas he was arguing were things he truly believed in. Washington saw this as a way for African Americans to create a life of equality for themselves. 4. How do you think white southerners felt about his policy of “racial accommodation”? Based on the reading, what struggle do you think African Americans during the Progressive Era may have faced?

of the races, and accommodation. He urged blacks to accept discrimination for the time being and concentrate on elevating themselves through hard work and material prosperity. Washington believed in education, industrial and farming skills and themes of patience, owning busineses and thrift. This, he belived, would win the respect of whites and lead to African Americans being fully accepted as citizens and integrated into all stagesof society. Washington's thinking was one of accommodation to white oppression. He advised blacks to trust southern whites and accept the fact of white supremacy. He stressed the interdependence of blacks and whites in the South, but said they were to remain socially separate: One of Washington's famous quotes was "In all things that are purely social we can be as separate as the fingers, yet one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress." Up from slaves 1901p.Washington counseled blacks to remain in the South, obtain a useful education, save their money, work hard, and purchase property. By doing such things, Washington believed, the Negro could one day be a full fledge citizen.

Washington’s Atlanta Compromise Speech was one of the most iconic speeches about racial injustice in American history. Washington’s plan, which he explained in his speech, definitely has its strengths, however had some weaknesses as well. The plan requested that white Americans help to fund education for black Americans. One of the strengths of the plan was that it was not asking for a lot. Caucasian Americans were not likely to get offended or angry about his plan when he asked for so little. Another strength of the plan was that it was very easy to carry out. It was one step, and although it may have been a small step, it was still a step in the right direction. His plan was simply requesting to improve racial equality by just a bit. This small-scale goal was easy to accomplish and very reasonable. On the other hand, Washington’s plan had its weaknesses. The main weakness of the plan was the lack of political action proposed to end or at least lessen racial inequality. Booker T. Washington basically agreed to submit to white law and segregation, only if black Americans received education. His plan was rather insufficient. Giving African Americans an education was not even close to reaching social, political, and economic equality in the nation. Therefore, Washington’s plan was a beneficial plan on the small-scale, but long-run proposed no major ideas to lessen racial

In contrast to Douglass, Washington’s famous speech known as the “1865 Atlantic Compromise” was not a protest or challenge of the political system, nor did he speak about the lack of social equality. Instead he focused his efforts on what blacks could accomplish, how they could compromise. He believed the militant rhetoric of Douglass and others distracted blacks from the path of liberty, equality, and economic success. Washington’s speech emphasized that it was the dual responsibility of blacks and whites to make the blacks a more

Booker T. Washington was known as the premier of black activist. His theory for the African American progression or “racial uplift” was that African American’s would remain without objections and silence themselves regarding the issues of disenfranchisement and social segregation if whites supported the black progression in education, economics, and agriculture.

Washington believed that once African Americans had gained that economic foothold and proven themselves useful to whites, social equality would be given to them

The Afro-American Almanac located on Professor Tygiel’s “Sites of Interest to History Majors” have a copy of Booker T. Washington’s famous “Atlanta Compromise” speech that he delivered in 1895. Neither before, nor since, has one speech had such a profound effect upon the career of a politician and the people that he sought to represent. Indeed, Washington’s primacy was assured when he in dramatic fashion promised (eye witness accounts have him thrusting his hand forward to underline this point) the south that: “In all things that are purely social we can be as separate as the fingers, yet one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress.” The south, indeed America quickly embraced