Reviews for Early Black History Movement, Carter G. Woodson, and Lorenzo Johnston Greene

The average rating for Early Black History Movement, Carter G. Woodson, and Lorenzo Johnston Greene based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2018-06-06 00:00:00 Anetra Nabozna It's interesting that with all the emphasis on "multiculturalism" when I was going through school, we never actually read any first source books like "Up From Slavery." However, I can see why some modern educators might want to avoid assigning this book: it does violence to a certain brand of philosophy because of its profound anti-victimization message and its focus on individual responsibility, the power of merit to supplant racism, and the necessity of climbing gradually rather than expecting to be catapulted instantaneously into an equality of outcome. Booker T. Washington doesn't sound like a proponent of affirmative action when he says, "The wisest among my race understand that agitations of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all privileges that will come to us must be the result of severe and constant struggle rather than of artificial forcing." Nor did Washington seem to have much tolerance for those who claimed they could not succeed because of their disadvantages. He sums up his attitude and his life success in one line: "I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain why one cannot succeed." Washington was a great believer in the power of merit and repeatedly says that "merit, no matter under what skin it found is, in the long run, recognized and rewarded." In "Up From Slavery," Washington insists that no amount of political agitation will elevate any race permanently if it does not first secure a foundation in "property, industry, skill, economy, intelligence, and character." As early as the Reconstruction, Washington was bemoaning that in D.C. "among a large class there seemed to be a dependence upon the Government for every conceivable thing…I…have often wished…I might remove…these people…and plant them upon the soil…where all nations and races that have ever succeeded have gotten their start, a start that at first may be slow and toilsome, but one that is nevertheless real." This attitude may explain why Washington saw fit to require labor of his Tuskegee students. Talking about prejudice does little to overcome prejudice, but, he says, the "actual sight of a fist-class house that a Negro has built is ten times more potent than pages of discussion about a house that he ought to build, or perhaps could build." Thus Tuskegee students, no matter what their financial position, were required to do things such as building their dormitories with their own hands and growing their own food. Some have been critical of Washington's belief that liberal education must be combined with vocational education, but he did not want his students to grow too proud to use their hands, and he desired to teach them the beauty and dignity of labor. He also acknowledged that the mass of people cannot all make their livings as doctors and lawyers and intellectuals. "No race can prosper till it learns that there is as much dignity in tilling a field as in writing a poem." So students learned not only liberal arts, but skills such as brick making and farming. "The individual who can do something that the world wants done," said Washington, "will, in the end, make his way regardless of his race." Washington's account of his life, from his childhood in slavery (covered only briefly) through his education to his rise in prominence as an educator, shows an amazing lack of resentment (and even some degree of pity) for the white men who oppressed his race. Indeed, he considers the white man to, in a sense, have suffered from the institution of slavery also, for it destroyed his merit by taking "the spirit of self-reliance and self-help out of" him. Washington magnanimity is owed, perhaps, to his mentor, from whom he learned "that great men cultivate love, and that only little men cherish a spirit of hatred." This is not to say he never criticizes the white man, but he explains, "I early learned that it is a hard matter to convert an individual by abusing him, and that this is more often accomplished by giving credit for all the praiseworthy actions performed than by calling attention alone to all the evil done." He says that more can be learned from coming into contact with great men and women than from books, and he would likely be appalled by the modern educational tendency to focus on the flaws rather than the virtues of historical leaders. Washington's philosophy and manner of presenting it has occasionally earned him disapprobation. Du Bois said that in this book, Washington soft-pedaled the horrors of slavery, promoted stereotypes of blacks, and was less than honest about the racism he encountered. Perhaps Washington did not dwell on these issues because he believed "success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed." At any rate, this is Washignton's story as he himself tells it, with "no attempt at embellishment," and whether or not you agree with his philosophy on life, it is hard not to find the tale inspirational and uplifting. Washington has often been accused of "pandering" to a white audiences, and I think this may be because of the inability of ordinary people to comprehend the greatness of character that is able to let go so utterly of resentment and bitterness and to understand that we are all in the same boat, and that what I do to keep you down is likely to injure me as well. The book was not always a gripping read; there is a lot of mundane detail; it isn't a literary masterpiece, and the autobiographer often repeats himself, but Washington is such an admirable figure to me and has so many great moral insights into life, that I often found myself wanting to underline the text. I agree with Washington that we learn most by studying great men and women, and I wish when I was in school we had studied more in-depth the lives of more people like Booker T. Washington. But greatness was not something we were much encouraged to meditate on in our "multicultural" education: prejudice, inequities, class consciousness, war, oppression, human weakness, and, alone on the positive side, occasional minority accomplishments, but not GREATNESS of CHARACTER. It's a shame, because the characters of great men and women do inspire.

Review # 2 was written on 2014-04-25 00:00:00 Kevin Mcgeough I enjoyed the first half quite a bit, the latter half much less. I am rating the book, not the man, and my rating only expresses how I personally reacted to the book! I am of the 21st century. This is an autobiography and it is published long ago - in 1900! Booker T. Washington lived from 1856-1915. He was born a slave on a plantation in Franklin County, Virginia. The exact year of his birth is not known. Some say 1856; he guesses maybe 1858 or 1859. Neither can we identify his father; the guess is he was white. During the Reconstruction Booker was still a youth. He worked at a corn mill and later in a coal mine, got himself educated at Hampton Institute, became a teacher, an author, an orator particularly famed for his 1895 Atlanta Exposition speech and even met with President McKinley. He founded the Tuskegee Institute, a black college in Alabama. He received a Master of Arts Honorary Degree from Harvard in 1896. Clearly this is a man worth acclaim and a man of which it is interesting to learn a bit about. It was the description of his life as a slave and the first years following the Declaration of Emancipation that captivated me. The small details, like not knowing where to sleep when given two sheets, like picking a surname, like never sitting down to a meal or how it feels to wear a flax shirt. Getting an education at Hampton Institute was quite an ordeal, but he was determined. I was rooting for him. Much of this book is devoted to Booker's philosophizing. I admire the man and his moral fortitude. I admire the importance he lays on self-reliance. I agree with his belief in the dignity of physical labor. I agree that education must be accomplished through use of one's hands, head and heart. I agree that those who are happiest do the most for others. I agree that more can be achieved through praise than through criticism. I do think he had a knack for saying things elegantly. However, as Booker works toward establishing the Tuskegee Institute he has to convince others to donate, to contribute funds. He did in fact get money from Andrew Carnegie. He had the strong belief that given the facts, benefactors would contribute to the cause. The book begins to sound like a promotional sales pitch, and he repeats the same moral dicta over and over and over again. I do agree with much of what he says, but it became a preachy, repetitive rant and so exaggeratedly optimistic. (He states the KKK had disappeared!) Maybe in 1900 people could still be optimistic? I don't know. Anyhow, at book's end I was totally fed up! Was the latter half of the book written for the purpose of impressing others of his accomplishments and so more donations?! The audiobook is narrated by Noah Waterman. The recording sound sometimes echoes and changes volume, but I could understand the spoken words. Neither bad, nor spectacular.