Analysis Of Atlanta Compromise Speech By W. E. B. Dubois

In the “Atlanta Compromise Speech” by Booker T. Washington and the “Niagara Movement Speech” by W.E.B. DuBois, both authors explain that human rights should be a given for everyone no matter their skin color. Washington and DuBois both take a stand on jobs, education, and integration of African Americans into American society as equals in order to convince white Americans that African Americans should be able to have and do anything that they can. While Washington seems to have a better position for each topic, DuBois is able to explain his position more effectively. Washington provides better examples and reasoning for his points, and DuBois is more successful at gaining the audience’s attention and motivating them to help gain African Americans

their rights.
Throughout his speech, Washington claims that African Americans should ease into society after the Civil War by continuing their manual labor jobs, which they excel in, and by not asking for too much in such a short amount of time.

Washington believes that African Americans should “[Cast themselves] down in agriculture, mechanics, in commerce, in domestic service, and in the professions,” (Washington 1). Meaning Washington wants African Americans to focus on jobs that they have already been doing and not jobs that would be out of their comfort zones. Washington uses a reasonable idea in his explanation of where African Americans should situate themselves in the American economy since solid foundations take time. He claims that if African Americans go into the newer workforce, specifically white collar jobs, then they will be overwhelmed with what they can do, and might fail or have a hard time trying to figure out what they are going to do for the rest of their lives. This provides proof to the audience for why Washington has the most correct and most logical stance on African American's jobs. He feels like they should take their time and stick to the jobs they know. DuBois also claims that African Americans are best suited for manual labor jobs because they are hard workers and have been doing those types of jobs for a long time now, some even their whole lives. DuBois says that “[the] men of the Niagara Movement coming from the toil of the year’s hard work and pausing a moment from the earning of their daily bread,” (DuBois 1). Throughout his speech, DuBois explains that African American’s are great manual laborers, and that is what they should focus on when the receive their freedom. He provides credibility for the men of the Niagara Movement by using “daily bread,” a symbol of their religion and morality, and repeating that the men are hard working, and are not just looking for an easy way out. DuBois wants to make sure that white Americans known that African

Americans are hard workers and that they will work for their rights and will also not take them for granted. African Americans need this credibility because it has not been very long since the freedom of black men and women. African Americans need to ensure the white audience that they are capable of anything the white audience can do, which is why they deserve equal rights. Both Washington and DuBois believe that manual labor jobs are best suited for African Americans, and that if African Americans venture outside of their comfort zone, they may be too overwhelmed. The only difference is that DuBois is not as harsh as Washington when it comes to speaking about jobs for African Americans. Washington says what he wants with no confusion, while DuBois mentions it here and there, giving the audience only a hint of his attitude towards the topic. Washington and DuBois both want to convince white Americans that African Americans deserve the same rights as them, and also to convince African Americans that they should stick to what they know when searching for jobs.
Next, in the “Atlanta Compromise Speech,” Booker T. Washington mentions education very briefly by saying “...to education of head, hand, and heart, [white Americans] will find that [African Americans] will buy [white Americans’] surplus land, make blossom the waste places in [white Americans’] fields, and run [white Americans’] factories,” (Washington 2). He believes that African Americans should be allowed education because he knows that they will excel even further with it. Since Washington believes that African Americans should stick to what they know, which is hard work in manual labor jobs, he believes that education will help them in the business and manual labor fields only. To emphasize his point, Washington uses an alliteration and an allusion, “education of head, hand, and heart” which references a holistic approach to education by including many different topics and many different styles of learning to improve the education system for everyone, and also produces a feeling of togetherness. This feeling of togetherness helps promote unity among Washington’s audience, which Washington does to help white Americans understand that African Americans should have the same educational rights as themselves since they all should be united and eqaul. DuBois dedicates a whole section of his speech to education. DuBois feels that education is necessary to become a decent human being, and he believes that ignorance is what will end up destroying the United States in the long run. “We want our children educated…[w]e want our children trained as intelligent human beings should be,” (DuBois 2), claims DuBois during his speech. Again, DuBois uses a reasonable idea to explain and promote his point of why African Americans should be educated in the United States. He wants them to have a real education, not just a “...proposal to educate black boys and girls simply as servants and underlings, or simply for the use of other people,” (Dubois 2). This furthers his argument by claiming equal educational rights for both white and black children. Washington wants an improved education system to help African Americans with their current jobs, while DuBois wants a new education system put in place to wipe out illiteracy from the south. Both Washington and DuBois feel the need to promote change in the education system of the United States in order to ensure African Americans equal opportunities for education.
Lastly, Washington wants African Americans to be integrated into society very slowly, to ensure that they do not overwhelm themselves with their new freedoms. He wants African Americans to stick with what they are good at first, claiming that “[their] greatest danger is that in the great leap from slavery to freedom [they] may overlook the fact that masses of [them] are to live by the production of [their] hands, and fail to keep in mind that [they] shall prosper in proportion as [they] learn to dignify and glorify common labour, and put brains and skill into the common occupations of life,” (Washington 1-2). Washington means that African Americans should be aware of what they can and cannot do. African Americans should not forget the fact that they have not had experience with jobs other that manual labor, so it may be a good idea for them to keep that in mind when they are searching for their new jobs when they obtain all of their freedoms. This is a rational and valid idea that Washington uses because he believes that when African Americans gain their rights, they might overwhelm themselves with too many options for their future. Washington does not want to see African Americans fail because they thought they could become something bigger, but they were not given enough time to get there. This furthers the argument of slow integration of African Americans into society by explaining what could happen if integration was too fast. Washington believes that African Americans should be integrated into society with equal rights since they are human beings who deserve the basic human rights white Americans have. This integration should be gradual, as it is the first time to happen for African Americans, in order to make sure that African Americans and white Americans can get comfortable with each other.
While Washington feels the need for gradual integration, DuBois feels that African Americans should automatically get every single right that white Americans have, and that they should be able to do whatever they would like to do because that is what freeborn Americans receive. In his speech, DuBois says “[w]e claim for ourselves every single right that belongs to a freeborn American, political, civil, and social; and until we get these rights we will never cease to protest and assail the ears of America,” (DuBois 1). DuBois uses the constitution to claim rights for African Americans. He claims that because African Americans are in the United States and are free men, then they should be able to have all of the same constitutional rights granted to white men who are also free. The author makes arguments from the side against African Americans having constitutional rights meaningless by citing the constitution which is fact and cannot be argued against. DuBois makes sure that white Americans know that this information is from the constitution to provoke a feeling of patriotism. This patriotism will cause white Americans to take a step back and realize what their country is all about, freedom, which is why African Americans should be offered that freedom as well, they are a part of the country. Both Washington and DuBois believe that African Americans should be integrated into American society as equals, but Washington believes that is should be very gradual, while DuBois believes that it should be automatic. Both authors take their stance on the topic in order to convince white Americans that African Americans should be given the chance to be integrated into society as equals.
Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois both explain that human rights should be given to everybody no matter who they are or where they come from. Washington and DuBois both take a stand on jobs, education, and integration of African Americans into American society as equals in order to convince white Americans that African Americans should be able to have all of the rights that a free white American man has. Based on analysis, Washington has more thorough explanations, while DuBois has a more effective stance on the topics, but both authors want what is best for African Americans, freedom.