Booker T. Washingtons Atlanta Exposition Address - Research Paper Example

The Booker T. Washington’s “Atlanta Exposition Address” The Atlanta Exposition Address was made by Booker T. Washington to promote race equality andto stop racial judgment that has been paralyzing societal relations in the South Americas. It was a day the blacks were all hopeful towards the end of the widespread jeering on the issue, if not for a contemptuous introduction made by a governor on Mr. Booker with the words, “We have with us today a representative of Negro enterprise & Negro civilization” (XIV The Atlanta Exposition Address, n.d.).

There have been so many instances in history and until today wherein Black Americans are facing judgment by the White Americans just because of their color which is for me a very apparent sign of poor education and underdeveloped values. White Americans as they would claim are considered to be privileged, knowledgeable, and always ahead of the rest of the world. However, with the racial issues involving them, these say little about the reality of White Americans being the better race. If greatness could truly be measured by the color one wears, then why are there equality good Black singers as well as the White?

Taking geography into consideration, one-third of the population of the South is the Negro race (XIV The Atlanta Exposition Address, n.d). This just implies that the improvements & successes through maximizing the richness of the South are massively because of the works of the people populating it – the Black Americans.Washington’s discussion regarding the racial issues undermines the treatment of the Whites towards the Blacks and promotes respect and every Black American’s right to have a pleasant environment to live in.

However, aside from that, Washington in his speech, was looking at a bigger picture. Ratifying the essentials of being human in general which involves different kinds of needs, considering Maslow’s hierarchy of needs that puts emphasis on not only the physical needs but most importantly the need for acceptance is something that would not only benefit the Black Americans who have always longed for racial equality but at the same time White Americans. Booker Washington mentioned that the Southern white man will never change the fact that they are neighbors with the Southern black man (Silverman, J., n.d).

Thus, since the situation is something that they could not change, it would be best for all parties to be friends and cultivate friendly relations as, in one way or another, one would be needing each other’s help in the future. I think, this reflected the man of integrity that Booker Washington was because despite all the misgivings of the White Americans, he still showed his concern for his fellowmen with a blind eye on color. Aside from that, his speech was a full proof that he was an effective person because he knew how to not focus on them being the victims which would probably just fan the fire, instead, accentuated how both parties could move on from this to a more positive and constructive way – respecting each other to achieve a better society.

This would be a good motivation for the White Americans to start providing equal work opportunities for the Black Americans, to listen to their voices, and most especially give them the best of what freedom has earned them years and years in history. Bibliography:"XIV. The Atlanta Exposition Address" Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and hundreds more. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2013. ."Booker T. Washington Delivers the 1895 Atlanta Compromise Speech." History Matters: The U.S. Survey Course on the Web. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2013. .

Silverman, Jonathan. "Atlanta Exposition Address." Answers. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2013. .