B Dubois Prejudice And Discrimination

The essay that I am presenting today is “Strivings of the Negro People” by W.E.B Dubois. This essay was written in as an article in the Atlantic Monthly in 1987, but before I get to essay, I would like to give some background information about Mr. Dubois. Both scholar and activist, W.E.B. Du Bois was born on February 23, 1868, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. He studied at Harvard University and, in 1895, became the first African American to earn a doctorate from Harvard. He wrote extensively and was the best known spokesperson for African American rights during the first half of the 20th century. Du Bois co-founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in 1909. He died in

W.E.B. DuBois views the subject of race equality as something that needs to be handled at an intellectual and cannot be combatted through African-Americans just receiving technical training. He received his doctorate in history from Harvard and was a lifelong activist that wrote a multitude of material, including

At the early turn of the 20th Century United States, there was a large debate about how the average American viewed African Americans or Negroes. As a result, white consensus geared toward putting Africans in a type of caste system, where they would consider below whites, women, and immigrants. By this point, most African Americans were just conforming to this way of life and did not seek to change this. While this occurred, many intellectual black men sought to change how society treated African Americans. At the forefront of the respected intellectual was W.E.B. Dubois who sought to shake the foundation of caste and the Harvard professor by the name of Booker T. Washington who wanted to fight within the caste system. Both men had the right idea and the same end goal, which being the enhanced rights of blacks, but by how this would be different. The point of view that has a more grounded argument is W.E.B. Dubois; as seen in how Dubois talks on the basis of fighting the disenfranchisement of political power of African-Americans, against forfeiting civil rights and working toward the equality of a higher education for Negroes.

Near the close of the nineteenth century, Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois both strived for change in ending racism each in their own way. There are some people that believed the peaceful way that Washington went about achieving change to end racism was the best way, and there are others that believed that DuBois’ idea to agitate to achieve the end of racism was a better plan. Washington was very non-confrontational in his stance of how African-American people should ultimately achieve this goal. DuBois tried to achieve the goal in a very aggressive way compared to his contemporaries, including Washington.

W.E.B. Dubois was the rivaling civil rights leader during the early 20th century. W.E.B. Dubois believed that through political action and education, full-citizenship of African Americans in America would be achieved. At first, he agreed with Booker T. Washington’s teachings, however through time Dubois realized flaws within Washington’s ideas. Dubois, in “Soul of Black Folk” writes, “The black men of America have a duty to perform, a duty stern and delicate, -- a forward movement to oppose a part of the work of their greatest leader. So far as Mr. Washington peaches

W. E. B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington were both highly intelligent African American men who wrote about the disparities between the lives of whites and blacks in the United States during the nineteenth and into the twentieth centuries. Each man saw the way in which his fellow African Americans were being treated by the white majority and used their intelligence and persuasive skills to bring attention to this very serious issue. Both men fought for equality through nonviolent protest and the application of logical argument and reasoning in order to better their lives and those of their social and ethnic brothers. Despite their shared goal of racial and sociological equality, the two men had very different ideas about how equality would be achieved and about what the African American community should or ought to expect in terms of actually obtaining that equality.

Dr. W. E. B. DuBois was known as an African American hero who truly believed that a person's vocational calling should be dictated by ability and choice, not by race. DuBois, unlike Booker T. Washington, not only demanded an immediate change but also drastic change, and was not afraid to challenge both blacks and whites on social and educational issues to accomplish change because he knew at that point, something needed to happen now. His strong activism and courage set the stage for future changes in the African American and White American race relations.

African-Americans in the 1920’s lived in a period of tension. No longer slaves, they were still not looked upon as equals by whites. However, movements such as the Harlem renaissance, as well as several African-American leaders who rose to power during this period, sought to bring the race to new heights. One of these leaders was W.E.B. DuBois, who believed that education was the solution to the race problem. The beliefs of W.E.B. DuBois, as influenced by his background, had a profound effect on his life work, including the organizations he was involved with and the type of people he attracted. His background strongly influenced the way he attacked the "Negro Problem." His

Slavery has been entwined with American history ever since Dutch traders brought twenty captive Africans to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. Slavery in America is a subject with minimal truths and stories rarely told. The public school system excludes the fact that eight of the first twelve American presidents were major slaveholders. Emancipation brought freedom, but not approximation. The civil rights movement killed Jim Crow, but shadows remained. Affirmative Action created opportunities, but racism continues.

The institution of slavery dates back before written records. The term slave was originally a derivative from the historical French and Latin medieval word for Slavic people of central and Eastern Europe. [ (wikipedia, 2010) ] In North America, the class system is systematically at the root of every socioeconomic and political issue resulting in Super companies, multibillionaires and the formation of lobbyists and special interest groups; there always has and always will be the have and have-nots. Unfortunately, for African Americans who have historically been the have-nots, that does not seem to have changed as evidenced by recent events like the Jenna 6. African Americans have a history uniquely

Pioneer in the struggle for Afro-American liberation and for African liberation, prolific black scholar, W.E.B. DuBois (1868 - 1963) was one of the giants of the twentieth century. (Foner, flap text)

W. E. B. DuBois was born in Massachusetts in 1868. Unlike Washington, DuBois was born a free man. He lived in a middle-class population with mostly Europeans, going to school was not a hassle for him even though there were not many black students. Dubois would attend elementary and high school in the town where he lived. Dubois said that he received a lot of enthusiasm from his peers. When he was 17, W.E. B. Dubois traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to attend Fisk University. While there, he studied Latin, Greek, English, Chemistry, and Physics. Even though Dubois wanted an education he would first encounter racial discrimination with the Jim Crow laws (blacks were not to be treated the same as whites). This was an eye-opening experience that changed his life and opened his eyes. After he graduated from Fisk University, W.E.B. Dubois would move back up north to attend Harvard University to work on his Master’s degree. The incident that opened his eyes politically was a trip to study abroad in Berlin, Germany. Dubois studied with some of the most intelligent

Almost a 100 years ago slavery was a big thing back then.Many African Americans were considered as slaves because the color of their skin or their religion.African Americans were working for people who owned farm land and wanted them to work because they didn’t wanted to do the work.The owner paid for the slaves a lot of money.Although african americans were suffering they made it through.To go through that far they have to use leadership,get along with others and most slaves went through prejudice.

In contrast, W.E.B. Dubois, also garnered attention for his book titled The Soul of Black Folk, and while he also fought for African American rights his book focused mainly on rallying protest against discrimination and also for civil rights (160). W.E.B. Dubois differed from Washington, Marshall, and King primarily through his advocacy as the director of multiple positions for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) (160). Dubois worked as director on multiple positions that dealt with creating publicity and news for the general

African Americans during the 1900s lived lives full of uncertainty. They were no longer slaves, but still looked upon by many as inferior to the white race. However in this period of tension, there were men who sought to bring their race to new heights. One of these men was W.E.B Du Bois. Few have influenced the lives of African Americans in such a way as W.E.B Du Bois. The vision he had for African Americans was one that many found great hope in. He sought for the day that his race for finally have civil equality in every aspect of life.