E. B. Dubois's Argument For Valuing Truth

Dr. W.E.B Dubois was an educator, writer, scholar, civil right activist, pan-Africanist born on February 23rd as a free man in his small village Barrington, Massachusetts, exactly three years after the American civil war. During generation, the Dubois family were fully accepted in their community. The great grandfather of Dr. W.E.B Dubois fought in the American revolution. In his small town of barely 5,000 people, class and race were totally neglected. However, at a young age, Dubois was warned about his African heritage.

Contrast DuBois to Washington on the issue of education. Which side of the debate is more persuasive for the late 19th century: industrial or higher ed? W.E.B Dubois' approach on the issue of higher education is a more persuasive debate for late 19th century as it provided a radical approach for that era and helped politically charge a race in their fight for equality. Both Booker T. Washington and Dubois were key figures in the advancement of African Americans, yet they had very different approaches in their quest for improving the future of their fellow race.

DuBois also argued on the importance of a higher education, he believed that without a higher education, it would be difficult to obtain rights. He also believed that black progress, needed leadership; educated leadership who would guide others and teach them. The Crisis became one of DuBois significant triumphs. As the author of the article states, “The Crisis was a hard-hitting political journal that ran sharp editorial critiques of racists policies and detailed reports on specific cases of racial discrimination alongside proud stories of African Americans’ triumphs in defiance of racism.”

Washington was born into slavery and experienced things DuBois didn’t. Living in a prejudice world Washington wanted all blacks to be treated the same. Washington felt that it was important for African Americans to have the same opportunity to receive equal education, as others. DuBois felt that it was necessary for blacks to receive a classical education, in order to reach their full potential. He also stressed the importance of educating African American teachers, professional men, minsters, and

After slavery was ended in the late 1800’s, many African Americans were tasked with the burden of integrating into a society that most of them only knew as servants. This posed a fork in the road for the common African American. Do they assimilate as quietly as possible and learn how to contribute to the American society and economy as a working man? Or do they continue their everlasting fight for even truer equality in America by fighting for voting rights, civil rights, and a higher education opportunity for them and their children? Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois both argued their views on the dilemma that faced their people, with Booker aligning more with the first question and Du Bois associating himself with the second, while refuting Washington’s vision.

However, instead of planning the escape Socrates started the dialog about why he would rather obey the law and be executed. At first, Crito presented two arguments to

Achieving African American Equality Booker T. Washington and W.E.B Du Bois were two of the most influential advocates for African American equality during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (Blatty, 1). Although both men ultimately had the same goal, their methods for achieving African American equality were remarkably different. To begin, the men had conflicting ideas about what constituted as African American equality. Booker T. Washington argued that the accumulation of wealth and the ability to prove that Blacks were productive members of society would be the mark of true equality for African Americans (Painter, 155).

W.E.B Du Bois and His Impact on Black America W.E.B Dubois was a man who believed and fought for a cause that changed and revolutionized how some people see racism today. Before Du bois started his civil rights activism he was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts on February 23, 1868, and in 1884 Du Bois graduated as the valedictorian from his high school class. Soon after he graduated from high school he was accepted into Harvard University in 1888 as a junior and was the first African American to earn a PHD from Harvard University. Shortly after he received a bachelor of arts cum laude in 1890. Later in his life Du Bois began to fight vigorously for lesser status foundations and became an advocate for full and equal rights.

This will display he will avoid the penalty of the law to his convenience when he had followed it for his entire time in Athens, which will further many people’s belief of his bad character. However, the Athenian justice system was flawed. It is not right for Socrates to accept his death as his punishment when many people did not comply with the requirements of the jury to uphold the law because they decided to convict an innocent man to his death with no strong evidence needed. The laws are established with the sole purpose to establish justice. Instead of establishing justice, many people in the trial let their personal judgments of Socrates establish him as the criminal when he was innocent.

W.E.B DuBois, Civil Rights activist, journalist, and educator, in his book “Black Reconstruction”, he researched the role African Americans played during America’s Reconstruction period. DuBois targets an audience of any open-minded reader that is willing to read about history from the lens of an African American. In the chapter titled “The Propaganda of History”, as the title suggests, DuBois argues that history is intentionally mispresented in order to influence the beliefs of the generations to come. “The Propaganda of History” analysis why the post-Civil War history remains manipulated and how that affects the African American community. One of his main claims is that the history of African Americans is subjective and belittling, that it

From 1896 to 1924, America went through a period known as progressivism in which people of all walks of life banded together to oppose conservatism and reform society. Progressives generally believed that government is necessary for change, however; it had to more significantly embody the ideals of democracy. Some of the specific changes that progressives wanted were regulating railroads, a direct election of senators, graduated income tax, limited immigration and eight-hour workdays. By supporting these changes, the progressives hoped to promote and expand democracy and thus give the people more power.

Like Washington, Dubois also believes that African Americans deserve equal rights. In his Niagara Movement speech, he states, “We will not be satisfied to take on jot or tittle less than our full manhood rights. ”(Dubois 1) This quote expounds W.E.B Dubois’ viewpoint as being similar to Washington in that both men believe that African Americans deserve equal rights, yet they are continuously being being refused these

This he is unwilling to do because he holds it in such high regards and believes that if people did not follow the laws it would cause the fall of Athens. Therefor by him not accepting his punishment he would consider himself one of the highest criminals. This is yet another paradigm of how important the opinion of the majority is because they are the ones who create the laws. By following the laws you are really following the opinion of the majority. Here we see that perhaps Socrates was inconsistent in his reasoning as he places such a great weight on the majority opinion through law.

Ultimately, Socrates is put to death because he attempts to transcend the parochial Athenian worldview in search of more universal truth. This is inherently threatening to the people of Athens who conceptualize a specific realm of appropriate questioning. (I would say Socrates-like questioning would be threatening to any society, including ours) Since Socrates is not fully in line with this bubble, the Athenian people project that "if you are not fully with us, you must be against us;" and therefore, Socrates is worthy of death. Plato's writings in The Symposium and The Republic helps us understand this dynamic In The Symposium, Socrates explains love in opposition to the way other Greek thinkers understood Eros.

The black folk were freed by the abolition of slavery, yet this new freedom was not so. Ther identity was forever fractured between black and American, and even after they internalized the whites’ perspectives of them, they still wanted to be both without the disadvantages and racism. They were degraded, dehumanize, and shamed for their lack of education and job skills. In 1865, the Freemen’s Bureau was established by Congress to provide them with aid after living in slavery and not owning tools, homes, or land.