Many historians and scholars in the field of African American studies know about the ambitious rivalry between Booker T. Washington and W.E.B DuBouis. This rivalry between two great leaders of the black community in the late 19th and 20th century gave birth to many debates and dissension about which leader actually offered a better way for black people to advance in American society back then. I personally viewed Booker T. Washington’s beliefs about racial equality as somewhat…“colonized”. I believe his ideas were too ground in the white agenda that was going on in that era. I believe W.E.B DuBois ideas were better for the improvement of African American people in American society. Of these two great men, the first to come along was Booker T. Washington. He was a reformer, an educator and one of the most influential black leaders of his time. He preached the philosophy of racial solidarity, self-help and accommodation. He pushed for black people to accept the vicious discrimination that they were going through for the time being and instead concentrate on advancing themselves through material prosperity and hard work. …show more content…
Because Washington began from humble beginnings and reached success despite his race, he is a positive figure in African-American history. However, as Washington also urges African Americans to submit to prejudices force upon to them, his pervious accomplishments are somewhat conflicting. Dubois continues to argue against Booker T. Washington by stating that he was not entirely to blame for African Americans loss of status in the U.S. But that he did however speed up the process due to his overtly public concessions. DuBois further argues that Washington’s proposals for the African American community actually resulted in the ultimate disenfranchisement of blacks, the lack of aid for black colleges and their legal