Booker T.
Washington
Black protest against racism and discrimination moved in two
directions: toward separation from white-dominated society, and toward
integration. Booker T. Washington (1856-1915), a former slave, advocated
training blacks to become independent and socially useful . He became one of the
foremost spokesmen for African American after the death of Frederick Douglass in
1895. That year, Washington delivered his "Atlanta Compromise" address at the
Cotton States Exposition. In this controversial speech he urged hard work and
patience, saying that blacks and whites "can be as separate as the finger, yet
one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress." White society
welcomed his comments as the formula for peace between the races, for he seemed
to advocate segregation. Other influential blacks disagreed. Educator John Hope
asked, "If we are not striving for equality, in heaven's name for what are we
living?"
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