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Difficulty: MediumEarly Civil Rights Activism and Organizations

Read the excerpt below:

"We refuse to allow the impression to remain that the Negro-American assents to inferiority, is submissive under oppression and apologetic before insults. ... [T]he voice of protest of ten million Americans must never, silent, allow the world to think we are satisfied with these wrongs."
—Niagara Movement, Declaration of Principles, 1905

The philosophy expressed in this excerpt most directly opposed which of the following?

  1. The accommodationist strategy of Booker T. Washington, which prioritized vocational training and economic self-reliance over immediate civil rights agitation.Answer
  2. B
    The legal litigation and lobbying strategies of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
  3. C
    The emigrationist programs that advocated for African Americans to leave the United States to establish independent communities abroad.
  4. D
    The social welfare and job placement programs developed by the National Urban League to assist migrants in northern cities.

Answer

The accommodationist strategy of Booker T. Washington, which prioritized vocational training and economic self-reliance over immediate civil rights agitation.
The correct answer is the option describing the accommodationist strategy of Booker T. Washington. The Niagara Movement was founded in 1905 by W.E.B. Du Bois and other Black intellectuals to challenge the dominant civil rights strategy of Booker T. Washington. Washington's approach advocated for temporary acceptance of social segregation and a focus on agricultural and industrial training. The Niagara Movement's declaration that they 'refuse to allow the impression to remain that the Negro-American assents to inferiority' was a direct challenge to Washington's accommodationist philosophy.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the origin and context of the stimulus.
The stimulus is from the 1905 Declaration of Principles of the Niagara Movement, an organization co-founded by W.E.B. Du Bois.
Identifying the author and historical moment establishes the ideological goals of the organization.
2
Identify the core argument of the excerpt.
The text rejects submissiveness, silence, and the appearance of accepting racial inferiority and oppression.
This core argument defines the platform of active protest and agitation.
3
Evaluate which contemporary strategy this platform directly opposed.
Booker T. Washington's accommodationist approach (outlined in his 1895 Atlanta Compromise speech) advocated for accepting social segregation and disenfranchisement in the short term to focus on vocational education and economic survival. The Niagara Movement's demand for immediate political protest directly opposed this strategy.
Comparing the active protest stance of the Niagara Movement with Booker T. Washington's strategy reveals the target of their opposition.

Key Concept

The strategic and ideological debate in early civil rights activism between Booker T. Washington's accommodationism and the Niagara Movement's active protest model.
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Early Civil Rights Activism and Organizations

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