Booker T. Washington

Blog – How is Washington providing an answer to the ‘go North’ or ‘stay South’ debate we looked at in Frederick Douglass’s Life and Times?


Washington provides many ideas and backup to confirm that he believes that African Americans should stay down South and not go up North. Many African Americans wanted to go up North but Washington thought that this wasn't the right move.
Booker T Washington believed that there was no point of going up North because so many African Americans were going up there at once already. African Americans thought they could have a better life up North and get a good job but so many of them had already gotten there that a lot less opportunities were present for the rest of the people still in the South.

Washington also believes that in the end there are still many opportunities down in the South that can also be found in the North. African Americans have for the most part grown up in the South and they have their own lifestyle there. Going up North wouldn't necessarily be that beneficial for an African American and this is what Washington is trying to tell the people. African Americans think that their jobs aren't good enough and that their life is really bad down in the South and this is why they want to go up North so bad. Washington said that he didn't think this was true as working in the field for example is still a normal job. The people down South would have a tough time adapting to life in the North and it makes sense for them to stay where they are from.

Overall Washington would like things to stay traditional with the African Americans staying in the South. This is what he pushed for in his debate and most of the ideas he brought up.

Equiano and Smith

Compare Equiano to Venture Smith. Both are Africans brought over to America to be slaves. Do they share the same views? How do they differ?

Equiano and Venture Smith both had a similar background and childhood. Although they were brought over to America to be slaves they were two different people who didn't approach life the same way once they earned (bought) their freedom.

Equiano was a lot more descriptive about his journeys and home town then Venture Smith was. Equiano takes time talking about his village and how he grew up and it seems as if he was very attached to his family and friends back home; this didn't seem as important to Venture Smith. Equiano also explains in great detail the trip from Africa to America where he just like Venture Smith was kidnapped to become a slave.

Equiano's experience as a slave in general was quite different then Venture's because Venture had gone straight to America but Equiano was in parts of Africa before he went to Barbados and N. America.

Equiano's experience as a slave was very different then Venture’s because unlike Venture who went directly to North America, Equiano was in different parts of Africa before he went to North America and Barbados and he spent a good amount of time in England in Europe. Another significant difference between the two was that money was everything to Venture Smith once he was a free man but it wasn't everything for Equiano. He wasn't as obsessed about it as Venture.