Eddie A. Wigginton Jr.
History H106 Dr. Robertson

The American Negro The American Negro is a speech written by Booker T. Washington September 18, 1895. Washington was born April 5, 1856 and died November 14, 1915. He was known as an educator and a reformer for the black community. A majority of his professional career was spent living in Tuskegee Alabama, home of Tuskegee University (Encyclopedia Britannica para. 1). “Along with disenfranchisement, the 1890’s saw the widespread imposition of segregation in the south” (Foner p.646). At this period in time whites were having issues coinciding with blacks, rather it was in the workplace, theatre, or on a train. Since Reconstruction, matters have only got worse. The South at this point were still trying to find ways around federal laws like arresting unemployed blacks for minor crimes and placing them onto farms to work as punishment (Foner 641). The biographical detail I will point out is where he lived throughout his professional life, Tuskegee Alabama. Washington is a resident of the problematic and highly racist south. He goes on to explain that blacks are one third of the South’s population (Washington para. 1). They can either be productive, intelligent, hardworking workers or they could be the opposite. Washington genuinely cares about the outcomes of the South and its progression as a resident. This reason alone gives purpose to the whole speech. After the reading of the speech I believe Washington wanted his listeners to hear where the blacks were coming from. It appeared that he wanted blacks and whites to be able to work together. The progression of the South should be the main goal and the progression of blacks. At this period in time he laid it all out on the line stating, “Cast down your bucket where you are” (Washington para. 3). The phrase in general means to utilize the black and white workers of the south to man industrial jobs. Blacks have been working on farms, and have always been by the side of whites. The country itself was built by the labor of blacks. Washington suggested it was better for blacks to take these positions, other than foreigners who have no contribution in the American way of life (cis.org Malloy para.4).
Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in all Its Phases Southern Horrors” Lynch Law in all Its Phases was written by Ida B. Wells in the year of 1892. Wells was born on July 16, 1862 and died March 25, 1931. She was a journalist who played a big role in antilynching in the 1890’s. Wells was born in Mississippi, taught in Memphis, Tennessee, and died in Chicago, Illinois (Encyclopedia Britannica para 1). The passage that put this era in context for me was, “those blacks who sought to challenge the system or those who refused to accept the demeaning behavior that was a daily feature of southern life, faced not only overwhelming political and legal power but also the threat of violent reprisal” (Foner 647). It seemed that at this time during the 1890’s, lynching was on the up rise around the same time when more and more blacks were educated. Ida B. Wells was an educator and a journalist. Both of these, as well as life experiences contributed to her success. A couple of points that she pushes in the pamphlet was that white papers need to state the truth, not misinterpret or doctor information. She believed that only the truth came from the black papers. The lynching of her three friends is what pushed her over the edge for antilynching (Wells para. 25) There are three pieces of information that Wells wanted us to take from the writing. The first is that lynching at this time was unlawful. Law enforcement was involved in lynching cases where blacks were presented with injustice. Respectable black citizens were being punished for crimes they did not commit. One other piece of information she wants to push is the accuracy of the press (newspapers). In white papers stories are distorted to make it look like blacks were the criminals. Wells feels that the only true information is printed through black newspapers (Wells para. 25).The final point she wants readers to leave with is the fact that these new segregation laws are hurting the south financially. For instance, they passed a law for blacks to have their own car on the train away from the whites. This caused the blacks to protest and not ride the train. A large majority of the trains business were blacks, in which they were losing money. Blacks left the south and went north because opportunities were better (Wells para 27). The quote to best summarize this is “I have shown how he may employ the boycott, emigration, and the press, and I feel that by a combination of all these agencies can be effectually stamped out lynch law” (Wells para. 33). One important similarity between Wells and Washington was that they both pushed for equality of blacks. They were the one of the last generations at this time who was born into slavery so they had a great understanding of the issues at hand. Both of them aim to say that blacks are the backbone of the south. The major difference between the two is that the way they present their arguments. Ida B. Wells tends to have a more passionate argument, with aggressive tactics. She is not scared to tell the truth even if it offends somebody. It seemed to me that she was against the whites and highly disliked them. Booker T. Washington on the other hand was very timid. He unlike Wells did not confront the whites, he wanted to gain respect from the whites for freedom.

Sources Consulted
"Booker T. Washington." Britannica Academic Edition. Ecyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.britannica.com.proxy2.ulib.iupui.edu/EBchecked/topic/639472/Booker-T-Washington>.
"Ida B. Wells-Barnett." Britannica Academic Edition. Ecyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.britannica.com.proxy2.ulib.iupui.edu/EBchecked/topic/639472/Ida-B-Wells-Barnett>.
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty! 3rd ed. Vol. 2. New York City: W.W Norton and Co., 2012. 641-53. 2 vols. Print.
Lynching in America, Ida B. Wells. Hub Pages, 21 June 2011. google. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://boeckers3000.hubpages.com/hub/Lynching-in-America-Ida-B-Wells>.
Malloy, Robert. ""Cast Down Your Bucket Where You Are" Black Americans on Immigration ." Center for Immigration Studies. N.p., June 1996. google. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.cis.org/BlackAmericansOnImmigration>.
Washington, Booker T. "The American Negro." Atlanta. 18 Sept. 1895. Address.
Wells, Ida B. "Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in all Its Phases." The New York Age Press 1892. Print.