Americanization

In Booker T. Washington's opinion, African-Americans should try and find a trade skill that they are good at, and pursue it. After all, he did open the Tuskegee Institute, a Black trade school. His argument is that African-Americans must start at the bottom, and work their way up the ladder. "It is at the bottom of life we must begin, and not at the top." After all, nobody hires in as the C.E.O. Washington saw it as important to approach Americanization this way because it would show to the rest of America a sense of character. Furthermore, it would be seen as less threatening to the white establishment, and therefore an easier road to travel. It is a greater shock to the establishment to see a Black doctor, instead of a black mason. And this shock could seem unsettling to the current society, and therefore create an environment where this sort of action would be discouraged. Instead of shooting high and ruffling some feathers on the way, it is better, Washington argued, to start small, gain the trust of the mainstream, and build from there. He was setting aside, temporarily, what he must have seen as lofty goals that might upset society in favor of a more conservative route toward Americanization.

W.E.B. DuBois, however, saw Washington's proposals as inefficient and submissive to the White society that is keeping Black people oppressed. W.E.B. DuBois felt that the best way to assimilate evenly into mainstream American society was to try and achieve three things: voting rights, civil equality, and the education of youth according to ability. DuBois argues that under Washington's plan, it is a noble aspiration for blacks to work trade skills and operate businesses, but that it would be impossible to occur unless Black folks had the right to vote. Although the 15th Amendment gave African-Americans the right to vote, there was an entire system of laws on the books to keep them from actually being registered, from literacy tests and the Grandfather Law, to straight up racism. DuBois also criticizes Washington for advocating thrift and self-respect, arguing that, "silent submission to civic inferiority such as is bound to sap the manhood of any race in the long run." Jim Crow laws would eventually crush the souls of black folk, through pushing the continued idea of inferiority. Finally, DuBois argues against the main focus on trade schools, because the teachers at Black trade schools were once graduates of universities or were trained by the graduates. Therefore, not everyone can be a worker. Some people need to go on to become the teachers, and have greater professions than just a bricklayer or plumber. In Washington's plan, the Americanization would happen, but at the cost of remaining low on the societal totem pole for a very long time, and would eventually eat away at itself, causing the downfall of the Black race, altogether.
Both of these strategies have their merits and their flaws. W.E.B. DuBois does raise several excellent points as to faults in Booker T. Washington's plan. However, some African-Americans of the time may not have been cut out for college, and would serve the community better in a skilled trade. Yet, others may have had the skill set to go to a four-year university and become a teacher or doctor or lawyer. On the other hand, Washington's advocacy of a slower assimilation would have been easier for a predominantly white society to accept.
To Americanize would be to assimilate and accept and be accepted by the American society. For these two, both options were viable, but only if the were implemented concurrently. Society needs people with special skills, and the people who want to specialize in those skills need people to teach them. Therefore, if everyone were a university graduate, there would not be the auto mechanic, roofer, construction worker, leather man, police officer, or Indian . Furthermore, if everyone worked in a trade skill, no one would go to a university, and little progress would be made toward advancing in society. Furthermore, with some people working the less glamorous jobs and some having more highly respected jobs, it would look just like the American society. All white people aren't doctors, lawyers, and professors. There are many people in all parts of society that have lackluster jobs. In a sense, that is America. The best way to Americanize is to act American. Or, when in Rome...

Works Cited

DuBois, W.E.B. from The Souls of Black Folk. 1903, (accessed February 14, 2007).
Washington, Booker T. "The Atlanta Compromise Address" 1895, (accessed February 14, 2007).

Vice President Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama