Posted on 10/01/2011 9:55:56 AM PDT by Staff Of Moses
Booker T. Washington, the first great leader of African-Americans in the post-slavery era, who emphasized economic self-reliance above all else — including the immediate pursuit of social equality — is a nonperson at the King Center. He is an invisible man.
Some might consider the historical slight to be inconsequential. But it goes some distance toward explaining the hurdle that still faces Herman Cain and his — so far — surprisingly successful quest for the GOP presidential nomination.
Instead, the majority of blacks decided to listen to the race hustlers.
But maybe there will be a second chance.
Of Booker T and the MGs?
““What troubled us about Booker T. was that he did not give us a timetable. When, then, would we be able to assume political and social equality with white folks?” said Marcellus Barksdale, a professor of history and African-American studies at Morehouse College.”
Interesting quote. Notice that he uses the term “assume political and social equality”, rather than “earn” or “achieve”. I guess he considered that impossible figured they would have to take.
One could compare them by saying Obama is backward looking, trying to right past wrongs, and Cain being forward looking, despite past wrongs.
I don't know that 'assume' is that bad of a word here. Variations of the word give his statement a decent meaning.
“I don’t know that ‘assume’ is that bad of a word here. Variations of the word give his statement a decent meaning. “
Yea, maybe I’m parsing too much. But I do have that kind of opinion when it comes “black studies” professors. The thing that I think Booker was getting at was that blacks may do just fine in this country if they got the skills they needed, but they might not do quite as well as whites, as a class. Thomas Sowell likes to talk about his Harlem neighborhood when he grew up. It was doing pretty well, lots of black-owned business, safe, a nice place to grow up. But probably not as wealthy as the West Side, for example.
Freedmen and never-enslaved Negros did face a lot of undeserved social disapproval in Booker’s day. In order to have been able to swallow Negro slavery, social mores had been warped and often church theology had been warped with it (Southern Baptists, with otherwise solid Christianity, were particularly bad in that respect). Losing those attitudes took a few generations of white people, and as noted some saw in these old attitudes a game that they wanted to keep going for various banal purposes. Booker (and also the Negro scientist George Washington Carver) preached a humble approach, letting the Negro win his case for his social equality on its merits. That would have worked splendidly. Instead we got what George W. Bush would have much later called the soft bigotry of lowered expectations.
In Herman Cain, there is a chance to show that this so called “Uncle Tom” is no less dignified than any white man in America. Barack Obama has really soiled the American presidency, with shenanigans that are too egregious to hide anymore. Herman Cain would bring dignity back to America overnight. He was dead on when he hinted that Barack Obama doesn’t even know how to do “black” the right way.
Had Booker addressed the question, which would probably have required the help of sociologists and theologians, he would have mapped out stages through which the relationship between white America and Negro America ought to evolve, and said however long that takes is up to both of you, whites and “coloreds.” The Southern Baptists could have been a great help by confessing they had made a mistake, but old attitudes did not die easily.
Steve Cropper for VP.
Hear, hear.
I saw Washington's book "Up from Slavery" was number three on Modern Library's top 100 non-fiction books of the 20th Century. I was skeptical until I read it.
As a fan of the greek writer Xenophon, I am convinced that Washington was trying to create the American version of Xenophon's Anabasis. I think he was largely successful.
One of the timeless political truths he was attempting to teach the blacks was that if individually they became the most useful people in their communities: the go to guys for people that needed help, they would acquire true political power. He new that just getting the right to vote was not enough. I've often compared it to this scenario.
How much political power to the CEOs of the Fortune 500 companies wield? Their power is significant. Now how much power would they wield if they were prohibited from voting? About the same amount. Why, because they are the ones who have become useful, that can get the needs of the communities met; they are the ones who can get things done.
Makes sense to me...sounds like BTW was a really good guy.
It speaks volumes to have Herman Cain compared with Booker T. Washington. Who shall Zero be compared with? The Manchurian Candidate. . .
“Duck” Dunne for Sec/State?
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