Has anyone else here read Up From Slavery by Booker T Washington...

Has anyone else here read Up From Slavery by Booker T Washington? Most touching and inspirational African American man in history.

Other urls found in this thread:

youtu.be/oFeoS41xe7w
twitter.com/NSFWRedditGif

I read him concurrently with W.E.B Du Bois, was a really enlightening experience. Both are fantastic writers.

hmm I've considered reading dubois but he was an absolute dick to Booker. He was a born free, northern, upper class black who knew nothing about the struggles of recently freed blacks in the South.

He had no right to treat Booker that way.

I won't disagree with your assessment of Du Bois: he did act like a dick to Washington. There was an understandable purpose to his dick attitude, however: whites had grown too comfy with the work that Washington had accomplished. There is no doubt that what he did for African Americans after reconstruction was monumental, but in the process Washington had conceded too much, African Americans had been elevated above slavery but were still de jure less American than whites. Du Bois in "The Souls of Black Folk" sings the praises of Washington, but had to be somewhat caustic in his evaluation because white politicians had begun to use to legacy of Washington as an excuse to keep African Americans in the lowest rung of the social hierarchy. Washington conceded that African Americans would not be equal to whites in his lifetime, but thought that at some point in the future whites and blacks would start getting along. I simply view Du Bois as carrying forward the work and legacy of Washington, not refuting or denigrating it.

But this is just my opinion... so yeah...

I understand, I just don't agree with Du Bois's position. Booker was right: We should have continued to build it slow and steady. It doesn't matter what the southern white politicians were doing with it. It's irrelevant imo. Du Bois wanted things too fast, and he, along with his white supporters, caused an artificial climb for blacks that neither they or whites were ready for.

In my opinion, the oriental Asians followed Bookers proposed way of climbing the ranks. They silently climbed to the number one position in this country, despite what racists, nationalists, or any politician said or thought about therm. They didn't rely on political or social economic movers. They did it just by accumulating wealth, education, and trade skills. Sure, it would have been much harder for blacks, but I think things would have turned out better.

I agree with your assessment of Asian-Americans. However, I believe the situation is different. The relationship between whites and blacks in America is far more ingrained in the very identity of the country.

Well the sad thing is, we will never know. If I was a good writer I would love to write a "what if" novel about America following Booker's model over the NAACP and governmental assistance. It would be a good read, although it would be definitely biased.

I think the mistake American politicians and lawmakers keep repeating is falling into this either/or dichotomy that is extremely unhelpful. Washington is correct in that blacks have to be accountable for the ills of their culture, but Du Bois is correct in that white Americans have to continually build a society which is conducive to assimilating African Americans and correcting institutions which have wronged them. Demagogues on both sides overstate racial tensions in our country merely for political gain, but there is still work to be done and it is unquestionable that progress is still being made, perhaps just not as fast as some would (rightly) like.

Except that's not what the NAACP ended up pushing for. They pushed for the opposite of assimilation in my opinion. By artificially moving blacks up, without personal movement through their own works, they created a split culture and people. It's the source of the majority of hostilities now imo. I think they had good intentions but ended up doing more harm than good.

I haven't read Washington, I'm only familiar with DuBois who I consider one of the greatest early American writers. His prose had that powerful and insightful tone that reminded me strongly of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Still gotta check out Booker T.

>he's okay but the problem is that he didn't want to kill whitey as much I do
This is what prog criticism of black progressives always boils down to--not openly hating white folks enough. On a long enough timeline their fag performative morality eventually pushes them into neo-Puritan theatrics and they start openly supporting rapists and murderers like Eldridge Cleaver and the Black Panthers and Thomas Sankara in a kind of self-dare to see how batshit demented they can go while still pretending to themselves they're good people.

There's a quote from Washington's biography that I felt was very moving about this very subject:

>I learned the lesson that great men cultivate love, and that only little men cherish a spirit of hatred. I learned that assistance given to the weak makes the one who gives it strong; and that oppression of the unfortunate makes one weak.

>It is now long ago that I learned this lesson from General Armstrong, and resolved that I would permit no man, no matter what his colour might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him. With God's help, I believe that I have completely rid myself of any ill feeling toward the Southern white man for any wrong that he may have inflicted upon my race. I am made to feel just as happy now when I am rendering service to Southern white men as when the service is rendered to a member of my own race. I pity from the bottom of my heart any individual who is so unfortunate as to get into the habit of holding race prejudice.

>Washington, Booker T.. Up from Slavery: An Autobiography (Annotated) (p. 65). Seahorse Publishing. Kindle Edition.

>I think they had good intentions but ended up doing more harm than good.
Lmao. The NAACP was founded by a Jew to divide blacks from whites.

It really is a shame that so many blacks and progressives reject Washington's ideology

I don't know much about the history of black america, but why wouldn't you put frederick douglass first?

he's the only guy i've read in detail, might just love the hair tho

Don't think ive ever seen such civil discussion about race on Veeky Forums. Its funny because i just read Invisible Man for class

Because I haven't read about him yet. What do you recommend?

whose the best black intellectual/author for a clueless white canadian?

Plato

OP here, I wouldn't know. I've just been on a kick lately studying black figures during and after slavery.

Booker was no "intellectual" or author but his influence on black education and race relations is unparalleled. Maybe you should start there.

Booker T was fantastic. I was furious when HHH beat him at WrestleMania

>it's an americans guilt out over their collective past by pretending to like shitty authors for their skin colour thread

at least read iceberg slim

How about you actually try reading the thread, learning just a little bit about the subject, or at least googling Booker T. Washington before you spew absolute nonsense everywhere.

Booker T. Washingston and his autobiography has nothing to do with American guilt over slavery. Moreover, it's about his life and fight to get blacks education. Booker was actually a very big optimist and held no ill will against white people. like mentioned here: It's only called Up From Slavery because he literally came from slavery, you dingus.

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

WEB Du Bois

Autobiography of Malcolm X

Revolutionary Suicide - Huey Newton

Cornel West

>Cornel West
Is this ironic or am I missing something?

I remember seeing Huey Newton on Firing Line and him talking in fairly Heraclitean terms.

was it Heraclitus that convinced him he should attack that woman for calling him "baby" or to kill that boy in Oakland?

Don't worry, the race fags will be here any second. Invisible Man is a top 10 novel of the last century, no other African American writer is above him, and he ranks above most White Americans as well. It's a damn shame that fire burned the first manuscript of Juneteenth.

What's it like to be a giant fucking idiot? Are you proud? Ashamed? Somewhere in between?

Just looked this up and I am very intrigued. I think I'm gonna pick this up tonight, thanks.

I suppose the same things could easily been said about Nelson Mandela

Richard Wright and Ralph Ellison in addition to the ones already recommended.

>Leftists
>No Thomas Sowell

Thank u

Not that guy, but his Narrative of the Life is great - beyond the obvious and visceral race/slavery stuff, it's a testament to how great a change being introduced to reading and writing can make in a person's life, and has some great Christian content toward the end (talking about the stated beliefs of a religion vs. the actual practices of its followers).

Just like a communist to put th hammer inside of the glass.

Gimmie that Freddie D

Yo check out Baldwin. Notes of a Native Son, Nobody Knows My Name, and the Fire Next Time, although he's a good fiction writer too. They're all pretty short and have some interesting bits like the essay on Bergman in NKMN.
Also check out his debate with Buckley youtu.be/oFeoS41xe7w

Why are you all in love with raging leftists and communist sympathizers? Hell, one of the guys listed is an actual murderer, with multiple accounts of assault.

Can no one name at least one non-communist black author?

There's no need to trample on the interesting minds ITT for sport and spectacle. There is plenty to learn from.

I assume this was in response to me, here?

Alexandre Dumas

That nigga is white.

Excuse me, hold up for one second, excuse me, please wait for a second, are you implying, excuse me sorry, are you implying, that we were once authors and shit?

...

Leopold Sedar Senghor. Haven't read much African literature tho.

Thanks user. What work of his do you recommend?

Poetry or culture?

George Schuyler

That tends to happen, like Miles Davis calling Louis Armstrong an uncle tom.

Either one, I'm not really picky.

How have I never heard of this guy before? Those are some strong words against MLK.

What do you recommend reading?

Haha, good one comrade

Urkle af

Who are some firm and strong black thinkers that can instruct my pudgy white brain with their weathered field hands? The meaner and more indignant the better please! I'm trying to get woke ;)

Alexander Pushkin

DuBois is amazing... I can't tell you how many times I've had the thought, "Holy shit this guy was one hell of a scholar." Probably not as many times as I've had the thought, "Holy shit this guy is an incredible prose writer."

What a lion of a man! He had as much brains as he had heart.

There seems to be a consensus on West (from the perspective of Academia) that he was a once-great scholar that became too personally involved in his own image as an activist. His writings on topics at the intersection of lefty politics and Christianity were once pretty cutting-edge, from what I gather, and he has pretty much stopped putting out academic quality work in the last 20 years or so.

Coming from black activist circles (or just black circles), there seems to be a consensus that he lost credibility after being such an intense critic of Obama's foreign policy ("a Global George Zimmerman" and what not after the drone strikes). Many felt that such sins should have been overlooked in light of racist and entrenched opposition to all things Obama in the post 2010 world.

Personally I like the guy a lot. I think his speaking ability is so off-the-charts good that it was inevitable he would leave the academic world for the activist world. It would probably do him a lot of good to settle down for the next couple years and write us a good book.

Unfortunately the above chunks of criticism have torpedoed his career. I don't know that he will ever recover.

>his speaking ability is so off-the-charts good
I watched him on Bill Maher and he is one of the most incoherent nuts I've ever seen.