Washington, B: Up from Slavery

en Limba Engleză Paperback – 13 mar 2013

Born in a Virginia slave hut, Booker T. Washington (1865-1915) rose to become the most influential spokesman for African-Americans of his day. In this eloquently written book, he describes events in a remarkable life that began in bondage and culminated in world wide recognition for his many accomplishments. In simply written yet stirring passages, he tells of his impoverished childhood and youth, the unrelenting struggle for an education, early teaching assignments, his selection in 1881 to head to Tuskegee Institute, and more. A firm believer in the value of eduction as the best route to advancement, Washington disapproved of civil-rights agitation and in so doing earned the opposition of many black intellectuals. Yet, he is today regarded as a major figure in the struggle for equal rights, one who founded a nubmer of organizatinos to further the cause and who worked tirelessly to educate and unite African-Americans. Reprint of hte Doubleday, Page and Company, New York, 1901 edition.

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Descriere

Some chroniclers have called black history from 1881 to 1915 'The Age of Booker T. Washington' and the label is apt, for he was without question the most prominent spokesman for his race during the post-Reconstruction period. Many of his contemporaries deemed him a savior -- the one man who could bring concrete improvement to the lives of African-Americans while also promoting racial harmony. Others, particularly black intellectuals, called him a traitor to his race, asserting that his accommodationist position not only contributed to black disenfranchisement and dejure segregation but, in the words of W. E. B. Du Bois, 'practically accepts the alleged inferiority of blacks.' But however one judges Booker T. Washington, his vast influence is inescapable, and his autobiography, "Up From Slavery," winner of the National Book Award, is essential reading for anyone seeking insight into the black experience in the early 20th century. In "Up From Slavery," Washington does not dwell on his relatively brief period of enslavement, focusing instead on his struggle to rise above it. For a more balanced look at the experience of slavery itself, this special Collector's Edition includes excerpts from the slave narratives of five less-well-known black writers, offering perspective and background to Washington's story. The text is further enhanced by a rich mix of archival material from the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.