Really nice essay! My libertarian leanings have always made me more sympathetic to Washington over DuBois, but you really make a good case for both.
A couple of thoughts:
1) I'm sure you're familiar with Thomas Sowell and his work on the economic conditions of the black middle class in the early - middle 20th century. And how they seem to have lost ground on a number of fronts post-1965. (BTW, I don't think I've heard you mention Sowell.)
2) I think about the 1921 Tulsa massacre and the fact that it appears to have been a white backlash to a burgeoning black middle class. Even in the Jim Crow South, blacks, apparently operating according to Washington's principals, were able to build a thriving prosperous community. Of course, lacking civil rights, they couldn't keep it in the face of white violence. But it does seem to suggest that you need both.
I wrote a term paper on this debate my freshman year of college and concluded that we should "try" Washington's approach. I had never heard of either person before the class. It stayed with me into adulthood and it's a big reason why I like Glen's approach. Learning more about the post civil rights era, I think there could be a similar study of the John Lewis vs. Stokely Carmichael rift. Why do we keep making the wrong choice?
They were both closer to each other in reality than met the eye. Even DuBois himself had to admit as much in his later years.
DuBois had nothing but high praise for Black communities like the one found in Durham, NC which reflected Washington's ideal more than most other communities at the time, and Washington secretly funded civil rights organizations that fought for Black suffrage and equality. I often wonder if Washington publicly promoted his accomodationist position (reflected in his speech at the Cotton States Exposition in the early 1900s in Atlanta) primarily out of a sense of pragmatism and self-preservation, and was maybe even willing to be hated somewhat by his own because of it. Talk about a wink and a nod.
We needed to follow both paths. While deJure segregration is gone, the cultural issue remains - and I would note that the cultural failing is not confined to the poorer black community. I went to a poor majority (~95% black junior high school in NW DC in the mid 1960's - Paul Junior High). While it was easy to criticize the school / teachers for the poor education that most of the students got, such criticism is poorly aimed. The school was filled with disaffected students who did a good job keeping other students from learning. I got beat up more times than I can remember for no particular reason. I currently live in a former lumbering region of WA state - and the local school disctrict can't get a bond passed to build more classrooms - the old folks around here don't have much use for the schools now and probably didn't have much use for them when they were young. The young folks who pursued educations and professions abandoned the inner cities and the rural areas - leaving very few examples of how to succeed in society. And even in the 'very good' school disctricts (which we were in when our kids were in school) most of the students are unwilling to study hard. When I was in public school the best students were very frequently Jews. In my kids honors classes in high school about 10 years ago, ~75% of their fellow students were the children of educated South or East Asian immigrants. Very few of the 'American' students were willing to study that hard - Vivek has a point. I told my kids to get used to it, what they saw was going to be their work environment as well. My son did graduate from high school with the ability to speak with an excellent Bangalore speech pattern and accent.
The tech workforce is globally sourced. The American white-black split is essentially irrelevant old history. We are competing in a global arena and there aren't enough Americans of any background in the tech world.
1. "The world is a scene changing so rapidly that it takes every bit of intuitive ability you have, every brain cell each one of you has, to make the sensible decision about what to do next. You cannot rely upon what you have been taught. All you have learned from history is old ways of making mistakes. There is nothing that history can tell you about what we must do tomorrow. Only what we must not do."
2. "Our society is changing so rapidly that none of us can know what it is or where it is going. All of us who are mature feel that there are historic principles of behavior and morality, of things that we all believe in that are being lost, not because young people couldn't believe in them, but because there is no language for translating them into contemporary terms.
The search for that language, the search for the ways to tell young people what we know as we grow older — the permanent and wonderful things about life — will be one of the great functions of this system. We are losing this generation. We all know that. We need a way to get them back."
They are reminders that while we should be mindful of history, there are limits to its usefulness. Neither Washington or Du Bois could have anticipated the ways America has changed over the years. Among other things, long gone are the days when "race" in America was defined in terms of only blacks and whites.
We live in a world where Asians and Latinos account for about 25% of America's population. That's almost double Black America's 13-14% share. Foreign born workers now account for 18-19% of America's civilian labor force. The net effect of these trends is that the relevance of the old "black-white" racial dynamic is fading. This has been apparent for a while.
It has also been apparent for a while that anti-black bias isn't the primary obstacle to black progress. Political pundit Juan Williams wrote a book titled, "Enough: The Phony Leaders, Dead-End Movements, and Culture of Failure That are Undermining Black America - and What We Can Do About It," that was published in 2006. It covered much of the same ground as Henry Louis Gates' 2004 NY Times essay, "Breaking the Silence" and John McWhorter's 2000 book, "Losing the Race: Self-Sabotage in Black America." All three writers lamented black cultural norms that were counterproductive. All three wrote about the importance of education. Here's a quote from Henry Louis Gates' father that was included in his NY Times essay:
"If our people studied calculus like we studied basketball, we'd be running M.I.T."
All three were right, but rarely do they say these kinds of things today. That's unfortunate because the path to success in today's knowledge-based. global economy involves developing the skills needed to compete for high value work. So why have Williams, Gates, and McWhorter toned down and/or backed away from their previous positions? You'd have to ask them, but it's fair to say that life is easier for pundits who lean more towards the Du Bois narrative than the Washington narrative. In other words, it's easier to remain cordial with people if you tell them their problems are the result of societal misconduct and neglect rather than tell them that solving their problems will require more effort from them than the broader society.
Black people can achieve economic equality in America, but only with stronger family structures and new cultural norms that include a sustained focus on education. Here's a link to a post I did for The Glenn Show in November of 2023 for those who want to do a deep dive:
"Black people can achieve economic equality in America, but only with stronger family structures and new cultural norms that include a sustained focus on education."
Vivek would have us know this isn't just applicable to Black Americans and I'm actually glad he said as much outside of a black/whte racial context.
That was excellent. I really enjoyed reading it. Gates entered my consciousness in such a negative fashion, I've never cared for him. I'll have to read that NYT op-ed and see if it affects my view of him.
The revolutions, the protests, the fiery speeches, the marches, the movements -- that's all exciting and invigorating, but eventually it comes back to putting one foot ahead of the other. That's often boring and tiring and frustrating, but that's life .
(Gates' father's comments sound much like Vivek's last week.)
Let me restate the last comment: while Dubois was certainly correct in prioritizing ending legal racial segregation over self help, Washington seemed to have the correct insight about the most effective approach for blacks to achieve individual and community progress post racial segregation.
In my own doctoral dissertation I tried to examine this question by ascertaining whether black self help is correlated with better black community and group outcomes. I found modest benefits in black communities associated with greater levels of self-help—as measured by black entrepreneurship and volunteering.
The larger point though is that the rivalry between Dubois and Washington—which was epitomized in the so-called struggle between political change vs. internal community development—was largely misplaced. Dubois was correct that racial segregation had be overcome first before Washington’s vision of black community development could be successfully pursued.
Though it is somewhat dated (1991), the issues covered in the essay are quite topical. It is a fascinating thought to consider that Dubois may have been correct about the need for political action against legal racially imposed segregation. While BT Washington may have been correct in recognizing that for black progress
Uncle Tom's Cabin immediately comes to mind. Tom relied on God and his Christian faith to see him thru. It didn't go well. Many blacks refer to compliant blacks as Uncle Toms, in a derisive manner.
But that was then. I have referred to myself as a good Chirstian, but not a great Christian. If I had been in Uncle Tom's position, I would not have relied so much on God. We live on earth, not in heaven. Regardless of your race and gender, someone doesn't like you. Be prepared to act in defense. And the best defense is a good offense.
As has been said here, in so many words, "That was then, this is now." Being black is no more of a liability than being white. If anyone wants to suggest that there is no downside to being white, I would say pull the blinders off and take a look around.
Right now is a really good time to reject ALL ideologies and philosophies that center around race, gender, or religion. Make it about true equal rights, the right to build your own life your own way. I have far more in common with some blacks than I do with some whites. Why wouldn't I align with people who see things the way I do, regardless of anyone's race. To keep making it about race is, well, racist.
Really nice essay! My libertarian leanings have always made me more sympathetic to Washington over DuBois, but you really make a good case for both.
A couple of thoughts:
1) I'm sure you're familiar with Thomas Sowell and his work on the economic conditions of the black middle class in the early - middle 20th century. And how they seem to have lost ground on a number of fronts post-1965. (BTW, I don't think I've heard you mention Sowell.)
2) I think about the 1921 Tulsa massacre and the fact that it appears to have been a white backlash to a burgeoning black middle class. Even in the Jim Crow South, blacks, apparently operating according to Washington's principals, were able to build a thriving prosperous community. Of course, lacking civil rights, they couldn't keep it in the face of white violence. But it does seem to suggest that you need both.
I wrote a term paper on this debate my freshman year of college and concluded that we should "try" Washington's approach. I had never heard of either person before the class. It stayed with me into adulthood and it's a big reason why I like Glen's approach. Learning more about the post civil rights era, I think there could be a similar study of the John Lewis vs. Stokely Carmichael rift. Why do we keep making the wrong choice?
Noticing the irony of one group making excuses and begging for scraps, while another group is exploring interplanetary travel.
They were both closer to each other in reality than met the eye. Even DuBois himself had to admit as much in his later years.
DuBois had nothing but high praise for Black communities like the one found in Durham, NC which reflected Washington's ideal more than most other communities at the time, and Washington secretly funded civil rights organizations that fought for Black suffrage and equality. I often wonder if Washington publicly promoted his accomodationist position (reflected in his speech at the Cotton States Exposition in the early 1900s in Atlanta) primarily out of a sense of pragmatism and self-preservation, and was maybe even willing to be hated somewhat by his own because of it. Talk about a wink and a nod.
We needed to follow both paths. While deJure segregration is gone, the cultural issue remains - and I would note that the cultural failing is not confined to the poorer black community. I went to a poor majority (~95% black junior high school in NW DC in the mid 1960's - Paul Junior High). While it was easy to criticize the school / teachers for the poor education that most of the students got, such criticism is poorly aimed. The school was filled with disaffected students who did a good job keeping other students from learning. I got beat up more times than I can remember for no particular reason. I currently live in a former lumbering region of WA state - and the local school disctrict can't get a bond passed to build more classrooms - the old folks around here don't have much use for the schools now and probably didn't have much use for them when they were young. The young folks who pursued educations and professions abandoned the inner cities and the rural areas - leaving very few examples of how to succeed in society. And even in the 'very good' school disctricts (which we were in when our kids were in school) most of the students are unwilling to study hard. When I was in public school the best students were very frequently Jews. In my kids honors classes in high school about 10 years ago, ~75% of their fellow students were the children of educated South or East Asian immigrants. Very few of the 'American' students were willing to study that hard - Vivek has a point. I told my kids to get used to it, what they saw was going to be their work environment as well. My son did graduate from high school with the ability to speak with an excellent Bangalore speech pattern and accent.
The tech workforce is globally sourced. The American white-black split is essentially irrelevant old history. We are competing in a global arena and there aren't enough Americans of any background in the tech world.
How are the BLM and Critical Race Theory working out for you guys?
Thought so.
Pining for the days when a good ol' massacre was in order for such egregious transgressions are we?
How is it working for you?
I am reminded of two 1960's era quotes from the inventor Edwin Land:
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edwin_H._Land
1. "The world is a scene changing so rapidly that it takes every bit of intuitive ability you have, every brain cell each one of you has, to make the sensible decision about what to do next. You cannot rely upon what you have been taught. All you have learned from history is old ways of making mistakes. There is nothing that history can tell you about what we must do tomorrow. Only what we must not do."
2. "Our society is changing so rapidly that none of us can know what it is or where it is going. All of us who are mature feel that there are historic principles of behavior and morality, of things that we all believe in that are being lost, not because young people couldn't believe in them, but because there is no language for translating them into contemporary terms.
The search for that language, the search for the ways to tell young people what we know as we grow older — the permanent and wonderful things about life — will be one of the great functions of this system. We are losing this generation. We all know that. We need a way to get them back."
They are reminders that while we should be mindful of history, there are limits to its usefulness. Neither Washington or Du Bois could have anticipated the ways America has changed over the years. Among other things, long gone are the days when "race" in America was defined in terms of only blacks and whites.
We live in a world where Asians and Latinos account for about 25% of America's population. That's almost double Black America's 13-14% share. Foreign born workers now account for 18-19% of America's civilian labor force. The net effect of these trends is that the relevance of the old "black-white" racial dynamic is fading. This has been apparent for a while.
It has also been apparent for a while that anti-black bias isn't the primary obstacle to black progress. Political pundit Juan Williams wrote a book titled, "Enough: The Phony Leaders, Dead-End Movements, and Culture of Failure That are Undermining Black America - and What We Can Do About It," that was published in 2006. It covered much of the same ground as Henry Louis Gates' 2004 NY Times essay, "Breaking the Silence" and John McWhorter's 2000 book, "Losing the Race: Self-Sabotage in Black America." All three writers lamented black cultural norms that were counterproductive. All three wrote about the importance of education. Here's a quote from Henry Louis Gates' father that was included in his NY Times essay:
https://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/01/opinion/breaking-the-silence.html
"If our people studied calculus like we studied basketball, we'd be running M.I.T."
All three were right, but rarely do they say these kinds of things today. That's unfortunate because the path to success in today's knowledge-based. global economy involves developing the skills needed to compete for high value work. So why have Williams, Gates, and McWhorter toned down and/or backed away from their previous positions? You'd have to ask them, but it's fair to say that life is easier for pundits who lean more towards the Du Bois narrative than the Washington narrative. In other words, it's easier to remain cordial with people if you tell them their problems are the result of societal misconduct and neglect rather than tell them that solving their problems will require more effort from them than the broader society.
Black people can achieve economic equality in America, but only with stronger family structures and new cultural norms that include a sustained focus on education. Here's a link to a post I did for The Glenn Show in November of 2023 for those who want to do a deep dive:
https://glennloury.substack.com/p/the-path-to-equality?utm_source=publication-search
"Black people can achieve economic equality in America, but only with stronger family structures and new cultural norms that include a sustained focus on education."
Vivek would have us know this isn't just applicable to Black Americans and I'm actually glad he said as much outside of a black/whte racial context.
Agreed.
That was excellent. I really enjoyed reading it. Gates entered my consciousness in such a negative fashion, I've never cared for him. I'll have to read that NYT op-ed and see if it affects my view of him.
The revolutions, the protests, the fiery speeches, the marches, the movements -- that's all exciting and invigorating, but eventually it comes back to putting one foot ahead of the other. That's often boring and tiring and frustrating, but that's life .
(Gates' father's comments sound much like Vivek's last week.)
I don't know enough about Henry Louis Gates to have a strong opinion, but I agree with the second half of your comment. Thanks for the kind words.
Let me restate the last comment: while Dubois was certainly correct in prioritizing ending legal racial segregation over self help, Washington seemed to have the correct insight about the most effective approach for blacks to achieve individual and community progress post racial segregation.
In my own doctoral dissertation I tried to examine this question by ascertaining whether black self help is correlated with better black community and group outcomes. I found modest benefits in black communities associated with greater levels of self-help—as measured by black entrepreneurship and volunteering.
The larger point though is that the rivalry between Dubois and Washington—which was epitomized in the so-called struggle between political change vs. internal community development—was largely misplaced. Dubois was correct that racial segregation had be overcome first before Washington’s vision of black community development could be successfully pursued.
Though it is somewhat dated (1991), the issues covered in the essay are quite topical. It is a fascinating thought to consider that Dubois may have been correct about the need for political action against legal racially imposed segregation. While BT Washington may have been correct in recognizing that for black progress
Unless you don't consider literal martyrdom an unintended consequence.
Uncle Tom's Cabin immediately comes to mind. Tom relied on God and his Christian faith to see him thru. It didn't go well. Many blacks refer to compliant blacks as Uncle Toms, in a derisive manner.
But that was then. I have referred to myself as a good Chirstian, but not a great Christian. If I had been in Uncle Tom's position, I would not have relied so much on God. We live on earth, not in heaven. Regardless of your race and gender, someone doesn't like you. Be prepared to act in defense. And the best defense is a good offense.
As has been said here, in so many words, "That was then, this is now." Being black is no more of a liability than being white. If anyone wants to suggest that there is no downside to being white, I would say pull the blinders off and take a look around.
Right now is a really good time to reject ALL ideologies and philosophies that center around race, gender, or religion. Make it about true equal rights, the right to build your own life your own way. I have far more in common with some blacks than I do with some whites. Why wouldn't I align with people who see things the way I do, regardless of anyone's race. To keep making it about race is, well, racist.