We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. By continuing we’ll assume you’re on board with our cookie policy

From Africa and Back: An Analysis of African-American Views

essay
The whole doc is available only for registered users

A limited time offer! Get a custom sample essay written according to your requirements urgent 3h delivery guaranteed

Order Now
  1. On African-American Education

            Booker Taliaferro Washington, born in 1856, was known as a great educator and leader of the African-American community.  Formerly a slave, he gained an education and ultimately became the first leader of a black teachers’ college—now Tuskegee University in Alabama—where he would culminate his life-long service.  He believed in providing young black boys with skills like masonry and carpentry, which would allow them to become productive members of society and be accepted by white Americans.  Responsibility and reliability were Washington’s ideals towards gaining full civil rights as American citizens (Spartacus Educational, 2008).

On the other hand, the militant Ida Bell Wells, born in 1862, fought for African-American and women’s rights, and against lynchings.  She was originally a teacher in Memphis, until her criticism of the Memphis Board of Education’s under-funding of African-American schools caused her to lose her job.  Wells expressed her disagreement over Washington’s thrust for industrial education, citing that the aspirations of blacks cannot be contained within the limited parameters of such a system (Spartacus Educational, 2008).  An evaluation of the ideologies of the two black leaders reveals a more sound and efficient solution in Ida Wells’ aggressive stance, since the passive method promoted by Washington further emphasizes the African-American stereotype of being relegated to manual labor.

  1. On Returning to Africa

            Because of problems met by newly-freed black slaves in the early 1800s, including hostility coming from whites, the Back to Africa movement was introduced by the American Colonization Society, composed mostly of philanthropists and abolitionists, but was the original idea of Paul Cuffee, a wealthy African-American.  By 1820, blacks started returning to Africa, and eventually settled in Liberia in 1847.  However, the movement declined in the late 1800s as the majority of blacks, assigned by the American Colonization Society to colonize the newly-founded Liberia, refused to return to a locale that no longer represented their cultural identity (Cumrin, 2007).

References

Cumrin, Timothy (2007).  “’Back to Africa?’ The Colonization Movement in Early

            America”.  Conner Prairie website, accessed 10 August 2008 at

            http://www.connerprairie.org/HistoryOnline/colon.html

Spartacus Educational (2008).  “Ida Wells”.  Spartacus Educational website, accessed on

            10 August 2008 at http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWWwells.htm

Spartacus Educational (2008).  “Booker Tafalierro”.  Spartacus Educational website,

            accessed on 10 August 2008 at

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAbooker.htm

Related Topics

We can write a custom essay

According to Your Specific Requirements

Order an essay
icon
300+
Materials Daily
icon
100,000+ Subjects
2000+ Topics
icon
Free Plagiarism
Checker
icon
All Materials
are Cataloged Well

Sorry, but copying text is forbidden on this website. If you need this or any other sample, we can send it to you via email.

By clicking "SEND", you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy. We'll occasionally send you account related and promo emails.
Sorry, but only registered users have full access

How about getting this access
immediately?

Your Answer Is Very Helpful For Us
Thank You A Lot!

logo

Emma Taylor

online

Hi there!
Would you like to get such a paper?
How about getting a customized one?

Can't find What you were Looking for?

Get access to our huge, continuously updated knowledge base

The next update will be in:
14 : 59 : 59