W.E.B DUBOIS
1868-1963
Statement
Quick Facts About W.E.B Du Bois
NAME:
W.E.B. Du Bois ( William Edward Burghardt Du Bois)
OCCUPATION: Educator, Activist and Journalist
LIFE: February 23, 1868 - August 27, 1963 Lived to 95!
EDUCATION: Fisk University, University of Berlin and Harvard
University (THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN TO EARN A
DOCTORATE AT HARVARD)
PLACE OF BIRTH: Great Barrington, Massachusetts
PLACE OF DEATH: Accra, Ghana
Introduction

Best Known For: W.E.B. Du Bois was one of the most important AfricanAmerican activists during the first half of the 20th century. He co-founded the
NAACP and supported Pan Africanism.

He Made many contributions so Sociology

He made the persuasive claim that one’s sense of self and one’s identity are
greatly influenced by historical experiences and social circumstances.

Throughout his career, Du Bois focused his attentions on the problem of racerelations.
HISTORY

Advocate for Equal Rights

Well known for his concept of double-consciousness and
yearned for a world of equality.

In 1903 he wrote the book “ Souls of the black folk” which
helped spark the creation of the small Niagara Movement
alongside William Monroe Trotter, Ida B. Wells and others.

The Niagara Movement eventually turned into the NAACP.

After becoming descanted by the lack of progress in the
advancement of equal rights, he moved to Ghana in 1961.
Purpose

Although Du Bois had originally believed that social science could provide the knowledge to
solve the race problem, he gradually came to the conclusion that in a climate of virulent
racism expressed in such evils as lynching, peonage, disfranchisement, Jim Crow
segregation laws, and race riots, social Change could be accomplished only through agitation
and protest. In this view, he clashed with the most influential black leader of the period,
Booker T. Washington, who, preaching a philosophy of accommodation, urged blacks to
accept discrimination for the time being and elevate themselves through hard work and
economic gain, thus winning the respect of the whites. In 1903, in his famous book “The
Souls of Black Folk”, Du Bois charged that Washington’s strategy, rather than freeing the
black man from oppression, would serve only to perpetuate it. This attack crystallized the
opposition to Booker T. Washington among many black intellectuals, polarizing the leaders of
the black community into two wings—the “conservative” supporters of Washington and his
“radical” critics.
Argument

In short: As a group, we feel that Dubois’ principles, motivations
and accomplishments were not only morally right, they were
wholly justified. He was just one of many equal rights activists
who have all played an important part of our nation’s history, but
W.E.B Dubois was probably one of the most influential, and not
was well talked about as other movers like Martin Luther King Jr,
or Rosa Parks. Schools should be teaching more about the man
who helped start an organization that’s still around today.

Equality is a fight that till being fought to this day, and we
feel that it is a worthwhile issue, whether it be racial, gender, or
status. Equality dictates our ability as a society to function, even
in places as remote as our own households.
Conclusion
 Dubois was one of the pioneers of promoting the end
to the “color line”
 This was not achieved by Du Bois himself, but he
was one of the most tenacious activists of his time.
 At a time when he was unhappy with the
advancements of equal rights and decided to take
action, there was no way he could have known the
impact that he would have on our world today.
 His efforts are shown through our choice of
presidency.
Citations

Reference—Taryn

"W. E. B. Du Bois." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic

Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 24 Apr. 2013. <http://www.britannica.

com/EBchecked/topic/172481/W-E-B-Du-Bois>."W. E. B. Du Bois."

Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic Edition.

Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 24 Apr. 2013. <http://www.britannica.

com/EBchecked/topic/172481/W-E-B-Du-Bois>. Porter, Eric.

"Imagining Africa, Remaking The World: W.E.B. Du Bois' History For The Future."

Rethinking History 13.4 (2009): 479-498. Academic Search Premier. Web. 24 Apr. 2013.

Reference--Collett

"W. E. B. Du Bois." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic

Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 20 Apr. 2013. <http://www.britannica.

com/EBchecked/topic/172481/W-E-B-Du-Bois>.

Reference—Ada Kamez

Bruce Jr., Dickson D. "W.E.B. Du Bois And The Idea Of Double Consciousness." American

Literature 64.2 (1992): 299. America: History & Life. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Moses, Wilson J. "Du Bois, William Edward Burghardt (1868–1963)." Encyclopedia

Americana. Grolier Online, 2013. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.
Formation of the N.A.A.C.P
Additional Information/Videos
"Double-Consciousness," by W.E.B.
DuBois
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_det
ailpage&v=iXQq-Gs_Fk4
W.E.B. Du Bois - Rivalry with Booker
T. Washington
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_det
ailpage&v=NnVt9RvN548