How Did W. E. B. Dubois Influence The Civil Rights Movement

Superior Essays
Most of African American history has been overshadowed by pain, suffering and a terrible sense of dehumanization. From the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, to Jim Crowe and on, black people in America have been subject to injustice for hundreds of years. However, throughout the years there has been figure after figure that stood up for African Americans. From Nat Turner to W.E.B. DuBois, to Malcolm X to Rosa Parks, these individuals took a stand for what they believed in. What they believed in was a color-blind Constitution, a country united, and equal opportunities for all, including African Americans. Many prominent figures paved the way for African-American’s to achieve a sense of social equality. One influential individual was named Nat Turner. …show more content…
DuBois is another influential figure in African American history who stood up against the wrong doings of African Americans. He grew up in Massachusetts and became the first African American to earn a doctorate at Harvard. He led the Niagara Movement which was a group of African American activists who fought for equal rights for other African Americans. They heavily opposed Washington’s Atlanta Compromise, and insisted on full civil rights as well as increased political representation. DuBois felt that African Americans needed opportunities for higher education in order develop its …show more content…
Many weren’t taught about Africa or the history of their people. Instead, they were subject to the whitewashed education of America, if any education was given at all, that left out any mention of the country that their people used to proudly call home. This “Back to Africa” movement was designed to not only relocate African Americans, but to educate them and allow them to be proud of who they were as well.
Nobody could ever forget the man who had a dream. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was one of the most influential individuals of the twentieth century. He led marches and peaceful protests as well as speaking and preaching to crowds of people. He fought to end the wrongful segregation of establishments everywhere in order to achieve true freedom for African Americans everywhere. He marched on Selma, as well as the Capitol. King participated in and helped motivate others to participate in the Montgomery Bus

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Compare and Contrast Booker T. Washington and W.E.B DuBois Booker T. Washington and W.E.B DuBois were both influential African American leaders in the early 1900’s. Both men were highly educated and dedicated their lives to changing the status of African Americans in a post Civil War America. Although both Washington and DuBois had the same dreams of equality for African Americans, they had very different ideas on how best to achieve this equality. Booker T. Washington believed that African Americans could achieve equality by first accepting that subordination to whites was a necessary evil.…

    • 1102 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Booker T. Washington and W. E. B DuBois used different strategies when dealing with the problems faced by African Americans at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Segregation was a big problem during this time and African Americans were the ones facing the brunt of this issue. Both Washington and DuBois tried to fight for equality of African Americans and were in hopes that their actions, as well as programs, would help aid society toward agreeing with them. Washington was more about trying to gradually institute equality whereas DuBois took a more immediate approach. Even though Washington and DuBois took on different views, it can be agreed that both men took important steps to improve equality for African Americans…

    • 1058 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The most two influential black nationalist I chose two write about in this research paper emphasis the importance to embrace black race and culture to support economic and self- determination for the black community. Both Marcus Garvey and W.E.B DuBois although opposed each other ideology of improving black social progress had a similar goal to encourage African worldwide to unite for economic, social, and political progress. W.E.B DuBois was an editor, novelist, civil rights leader and socialist. He was a black intellectual who enforced the importance of education among the black community. He had an interest in social science, not only did he concentrated on race relations but he conducted observations and research on the conditions of…

    • 1477 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Late 19th and early 20th century, the history of African Americans in the critical moment, WEB DuBois and Booker T. Washington have each put forward a revitalization of black nationalism to win equal rights program, which led to a serious cause of black ideological circles controversy. In fact, the goal of DuBois and Booker T. Washington is consistent, that is, blacks are no longer subjected to discrimination and stigmatization, enjoy constitutional civil rights and genuine freedom and equality. Two of them have the same views, there are also divisive. For example, they both recognize that black poverty, ignorance and crime is a huge obstacle of the black race progress; recognize develop the economic and educational of blacks, the importance of improve ethical standards of blacks. And emphasize blacks needs to self-reliance, self-reliance, are also propositions and southern whites get along and cooperate.…

    • 771 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    1960s Dbq

    • 1300 Words
    • 6 Pages

    : 2 The 1960’s was a decade of revolution and change in politics, music, and society around the world. It was an era of protest. The decade shaped the country and made it how it is today. There were numerous amounts of leaders, presidents, motivators, etc. that changed how the society lived then, and how we now live our day to day lives right this very moment.…

    • 1300 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    W. E. B Dubois Philosophy

    • 927 Words
    • 4 Pages

    E. B. Dubois was intelligent african american historian and philosopher. Dubois confronts the social issues of suffrage and education. He promoted black suffrage, supported women's voting rights and equivalent insurance under the law, championed access to advanced education, fashioning the "gifted tenth" building up the best of one's race. That they may control the mass far from defilement and demise of the most exceedingly bad in their own particular and different races. Dubois states “ I am birth and law a free black american citizen”(p15).We all our born with rights, if neglected we will always be in danger.…

    • 927 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The plight of the African American has been exceptionally brutal and generationally consequential in the United States. Africans Americans were brought over to this country by force as slaves and remained enslaved for centuries and after they achieved freedom in 1865 they continually struggled through the Reconstruction period and even beyond the Civil Right period with a system of written and unwritten laws in America that kept them oppressed and made it nearly impossible to control their destiny’s. Shortly after slavery ended, many black leaders arose that had differing strategies for how African American people could strategically achieve equality in the United States. Booker. T Washington, the most influential black leader of his time,…

    • 1458 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Later, he attended Fisk University, Harvard University (where he was the first African American to achieve a PhD), and University of Berlin. Dubois created the American Negro Academy and wrote many essays that criticized the culture of racial discrimination (Jarrett 910). He published The Souls of Black Folk in 1903. Dubois co-founded the Niagara Movement which later stemmed into the NAACP (Jarrett 911). David Walker was born in or around Wilmington, North Carolina, to a slave father and a free black woman.…

    • 1536 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois had opinions regarding the race and role of African Americans that differed in many ways such as: ways of achieving education and how equality should be attained. They both had two very diverse proposals when it came to African Americans improving their education and overall situation. Regarding their unlike proposals, they both shared the common goal of helping the African American community. Washington and Du Bois had very different upbringings, which nature their decisions from the slightest, to the highest.…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The importance of this action by Dubois is the impact that it caused in the African-American people. The Niagara Movement and NAACP undoubtedly are two progressive steps in favor of the black rights, and every people that are interested in the life of Dubois or in the African-American history, have to read about those two actions that Dubois starred. Dubois as an eminent person influenced the colored people progress in many ways. But in what places we can read about those ways? I will mention one of the most influential books that will be useful for people that want to know how Dubois worked in favor of black people.…

    • 1398 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    W. E. B. Dubois Analysis

    • 864 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois are considered as the two most influential black leaders of all the black American movement history. However they had contrasting views on how to attain racial equality. Within the books Up From Slavery by Booker T. Washington and The Souls Of Black Folk by W.E.B DuBois we see how different their views were. In this paper you will see the difference in how the two men saw the importance of education, the way they were brought up from children and also their political views. DuBois views sparked the Civil Rights Movement.…

    • 864 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    DuBois attended both Fisk University and Harvard, and obtained a Ph.D. in history. In DuBois’s essay, “Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others,” he shares his philosophies and opinions on how blacks should handle segregation. DuBois agreed with Washington that self-help was important for black advancement, but did not believe this would make a difference without the correct type of education and voting rights. He encouraged blacks to take political action, and had a full agenda for obtaining civil rights. Out of all…

    • 1047 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “The Struggle for Black Equality” by Harvard Sitkoff, summarizes the key elements in the fight for the civil rights of African Americans from 1954-1980. The book was set up in chronological order, each chapter embodying the new step to gain equality. The first chapter is titled “Up from slavery,” it consists of the small actions that took place slowly to assure the equal rights. By the end of the first chapter, the concept of equal rights was introduced more prominently, opening people's eyes to the problem. Nevertheless, there was still doubt in the system and people who did not agree.…

    • 1003 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    African Americans have had a long and burdened history in the United States, beginning with the institution of slavery and continuing on to the widespread racial injustice that they persevered and still endure today. As we look deep into the historical backdrop of America we cannot deny that African Americans have had a profound effect on the character of the United States of America. They helped to change the face of not just America, but of themselves. They called out for liberty and equality wherever the opportunity had arisen; battling ardently for the proclaimed equality that the Declaration of Independence decreed. This fight has been going on even before the U.S. was formed, through violent and bloody slave revolts to passionate and…

    • 1303 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    What W.E.B DuBois wanted was very clear. He outright said that he wanted equality rights and that African Americans had to fight and protest to achieve them. To work behind this idea of protest, DuBois founded the Niagara movement, and later assisted in finding the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or the NAACP (DuBois. Dolbeare and Cummings. “The Souls of Black Folk” pg. 329).…

    • 1268 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays