How Would Booker T. Washington View Civil Rights and Social Justice?

Lessons from the great proponent of black self-sufficiency

MLK Day weekend 2024

HOW WOULD BOOKER T. WASHINGTON VIEW CIVIL RIGHTS AND SOCIAL JUSTICE?

Lessons from the great proponent of black self-sufficiency

Virgil Walker

Booker T. Washington, a remarkable figure in American history, was born in 1856. Following the Emancipation Proclamation he emerged from the shackles of slavery with nothing but the clothes on his back. Despite the formidable challenges of the deeply segregated South he not only became a prominent educator but also an influential author and captivating public speaker. Throughout his life he dedicated himself to the pursuit of education and empowerment for black Americans. His wisdom and insights even reached the ears of President Theodore Roosevelt, as he offered invaluable advice during their interactions.

However, black individuals seen as confidants to presidents are often viewed as compromised. This criticism was directed at Booker T. Washington in his time. There are black individuals today who have embraced the teachings and legacy of Booker T. Washington, including notable figures such as Condoleezza Rice, Ben Carson, and Clarence Thomas. However, they often face criticism and are frequently labeled as sellouts by other blacks and the political left generally. Despite his contributions to the advancement of black people in America, Booker T. has come to be viewed negatively in many progressive circles. 

Yet if he were alive today, Booker T. would assuredly provide a wise perspective on today’s rebranding of the civil rights movement as social justice. How would Booker T. have viewed the much-revered time of civil rights, with its focus on equality and justice? Would he consider the effects of today’s social justice movement on black American culture a positive or negative development? What wisdom and insights would Washington impart to us today?  

As we reflect on Booker T. Washington’s enduring legacy over this MLK Day weekend, we are reminded of the significance of his contributions and the importance of continually striving for progress in the ongoing pursuit of a more just society.

From Reconstruction to Civil Rights

In his 1901 autobiographical work, Up From Slavery, Washington writes,

Among a large class, there seemed to be a dependence upon the government for every conceivable thing. The members of this class had little ambition to create a position for themselves but wanted the federal officials to create one for them.... I wished then and have often wished since that by some power of magic; I might remove the great bulk of these people into the country districts and plant them upon the solid and never deceptive foundation of Mother Nature, 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 nevertheless is real.

The disparity between “all men are created equal” in the Declaration of Independence and the institution of slavery in the United States was striking. This tension would eventuate in the American Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation, the 13th Amendment (which ended slavery), the 14th Amendment (which conferred important citizenship rights), and the 15th Amendment (which gave all men the right to vote). And this was just the beginning.

Despite major progress, there were still several impediments to equal treatment. Long after the Constitutional Amendments, many Southern states still mistreated blacks. Southern states continued to pass laws that marginalized black people. This treatment came in the form of peonage, black codes, and Jim Crow laws. Such discriminatory policies opened up a new front in the fight for equality.

The journey to equality for blacks in America has a long and treacherous history. However, successful black men like Lebron James claiming that black people are “literally hunted down every day, every time we step outside of the comfort of our homes” diminishes the historical experience of government-sanctioned abuse of blacks. For those who agree with Lebron’s catastrophizing rhetoric, the new social justice movement holds a lot of promise. This modern social justice movement typically calls for an emboldened government to be responsible for holding those accused of social injustice accountable through laws and other measures meant to promote economic justice and racial equity.

The Civil Rights Movement

The concept of the government acting on behalf of social justice is not novel. It is one that civil rights advocates have long harnessed to effect change.

The civil rights movement began when Rosa Parks, a black seamstress, was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, on December 1, 1955, for violating a draconian Jim Crow law. Ms. Parks sat in the front row of the “colored section” of the bus, which was established to separate black and white commuters. Ms. Parks refused to give up her seat to a white passenger when ordered to do so. Her civil disobedience was the spark that ignited the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955.

During the boycott, blacks, who made up seventy percent of the Montgomery Bus System’s patrons, refused to get on the buses until they were desegregated. The city of Montgomery lost between 30 and 40 thousand bus fares each day during the boycott. Financial records suggest the city lost $3,000 per day (which equates to $33,676 per day in 2024).

Rather than pay fares to the city, black patrons paid for a one-of-a-kind mode of transportation within their community. Former bus patrons needing to get to work paid their neighbors for a lift and thus gave the fare to members of their own community. The economic conditions in black communities experienced positive growth and improvement due to the retention of funds that were previously lost on payments to the public bus system. These black protestors created Uber before there was Uber.

What was thought to be a one-day boycott eventually lasted for more than a year, and after 382 days, black patrons received what they fought for—desegregated buses. The United States Supreme Court decision in Browder v. Gayle successfully ended discrimination on public buses. Blacks abandoned their new, community-based transportation and went back to using government-run buses.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s successful efforts leading the Montgomery Bus Boycott catapulted him onto the national stage.

Booker T. Washington and the Montgomery Bus Boycott

There were valuable lessons from the Montgomery Bus Boycott that black Americans could have embraced had they drawn from the teachings of Booker T. Washington.

Although Washington recognized the government's responsibility and would have supported the Supreme Court’s decision to desegregate buses, he would have advised black Americans to continue utilizing the independent transportation methods that had served them well in the previous year. Booker T. would have argued that, by doing so, blacks could maintain their autonomy and self-sufficiency while navigating the changes brought about by desegregation. In a thought-provoking essay published in The Atlantic in 1896, titled “The Awakening of the Negro,” he wrote,

Nothing else so soon brings about right relations between the two races in the South as the industrial progress of the negro. Friction between the races will pass away in proportion as the black man, by reason of his skill, intelligence, and character, can produce something that the white man wants or respects in the commercial world. We find that as every year we put into a Southern community colored men who can start a brickyard, a sawmill, a tin shop, or a printing office,—men who produce something that makes the white man partly dependent upon the negro, instead of all the dependence being on the other side,—a change takes place in the relations of the races.

Regrettably, the Montgomery Bus Boycott would be the sole manifestation of the civil rights movement that nearly aligned with Booker T.’s principles. Subsequently, Martin Luther King Jr. and his supporters transitioned from addressing the challenge of self-reliance to organizing marches and sit-ins in order to compel white-owned businesses to abolish segregation.

Civil rights leaders advocated for equality, emphasizing the importance of desegregation in daily life—riding the same bus, using the same restroom, and dining at integrated lunch counters. However, the focus on integration led to the abandonment of Washington's vision of self-sufficiency and economic empowerment. As a result, without a strong system of self-reliance and financial independence, the black community would need to seek greater political power in order to draw upon government resources to fund and promote black advancement initiatives. Many black leaders, acting as the “voice of the people,” often aligned themselves and their followers with any political party that would validate them through their proximity to politically powerful whites.

Put simply, the civil rights leaders successfully tied the advancement of the black community to the shifting political winds. In order to achieve this, it was largely necessary to give up on economic self-sufficiency and embrace political power. Civil rights leaders might not have initially considered this trade-off, but politicians did. Cunning politicians handed out political favors in return for the votes they needed from the black community. The pursuit of economic self-sufficiency was largely abandoned.

Booker T. Washington and Social Justice

Drawing inspiration from past civil rights victories, the new social justice movement recognizes the crucial role of political power. In our post-George Floyd culture, society has embraced the lasting impact of white guilt. The effects of this movement have become evident as white guilt is used as a social and political tool to drive change.

In Booker T. Washington’s vision, empowerment and progress came from skill, intelligence, and character. According to Booker T., these factors cultivate interracial respect and economic independence for black people. Despite the well-meaning intentions and widespread support of the modern social justice movement, Washington would likely view it with a critical eye.

Washington would likely argue that focusing on victimhood does not contribute to advancement and may even hinder black development. Washington was a staunch advocate for economic self-determination and autonomy. He would not align with a movement that tends to portray the black community in a state of perpetual victimhood.

Furthermore, Washington would view the modern social justice movement's reliance on political support and governmental and institutional intervention as a deviation from his principles of self-sufficiency. His philosophy was based on the idea that rather than relying on the kindness or approval of others, the black community should drive its own progress from within.

It can plausibly be posited that Booker T. would be critical of a movement that seeks change through external forces rather than fostering internal growth and development. According to his thinking, real change and uplift occur when a community can show self-sufficiency and produce goods or services that others respect and depend on. In contrast, the modern social justice movement, emphasizing black victimhood and the need for every institution in America to make special allowances for black people, could be seen as a divergence from this path.

Why Booker T. Washington Matters

Why should we hold in high regard the perspective of Booker T. Washington, a man who could never have fathomed the extraordinary opportunities that exist today for any ethnic group in America, and for blacks in particular? Perhaps we should heed his words because he was a remarkable individual who achieved extraordinary things at a time when the odds were overwhelmingly against him. From his vantage point, the challenges black Americans face in our modern era—more than half a century after the passage of the Civil Rights Act and almost 160 years since the abolition of the slavery he was born into—would surely pale in comparison. There is always wisdom to be gained from those who came before us if only we are willing to pause and listen.

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Virgil Walker is the Vice President of Ministry Relations for G3 Ministries. Virgil serves as a contributor for Fearless with Jason Whitlock and the co-host of the Just Thinking podcast. He and Darrell Harrison have co-authored Just Thinking about the State, Just Thinking about Ethnicity, and Why Are You Afraid?. Virgil earned his MBA from Southern Nazarene University and his Masters in Theological Studies from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. In addition, Virgil is deeply involved in jail ministry, sidewalk ministry at abortion clinics, and street evangelism. He writes here and tweets here. Virgil and his wife, Tomeka, have three children.