Booker T. Washington vs Malcolm X

 Both Booker T. Washington and Malcolm X were self made men who went out of their way to educate themselves even in the face of oppression. Booker T. Washington documented his journey in his Autobiography titled Up from Slavery. In his autobiography, he recounts how himself and the other recently emancipated slaves were taught to read by the few literate black people in their area (Washington 20-21). Washington struggled to regularly attend schooling due to his work schedule, but even then, he found free time in between his long work hours to practice reading (25). He accredited his perseverance and work ethic as the main components of his success, and he believed that other black people should work hard to prove themselves worthy of participating in white society rather than fighting directly for rights. Malcolm X was also a self made man, but his education background differed from Booker T. Washington’s; Malcolm X learned to read while he was serving a prison sentence for burglary (X 1859). While in prison, Malcolm X started out by writing out the entire dictionary word for word to practice his reading and writing skills (1863). Over time, he became a voracious reader who actively sought out history books that told the histories of marginalized people that were often ignored during that time (1864).

Booker T. Washington and Malcolm X’s different educational backgrounds led to a difference in their goals and motivations on how to approach and achieve equality. Booker T. Washington focused on his self made aspect and his perseverance. In the Atlanta Exposition Address, he recounts a story where a lost vessel is told to “Cast down your bucket where you are” (Washington 152). This quote explains his core philosophy of making do with what you have. His educational background was focused on this belief: work hard and you will be rewarded. 

Malcolm X on the other hand didn’t focus on learning to read for the sake of reading, but to understand history. His autobiography focused more on him reading the histories of marginalized people whose stories weren’t being told in a normal history classroom setting.  Malcolm X explained how “history had been ‘whitened’” (X 1864), and that the books he deliberately sought out showed him “how the white man had brought upon the world’s black, brown, red, and yellow peoples every variety of the sufferings of exploitation” (1866). Malcolm X’s educational background reveals his stance on hating white people. Malcolm X believed that African Americans were being systematically oppressed by white people as they had with many other peoples in the past. His educational background made him believe that educating oneself on their own history as told by themselves rather than white people would allow black people to break free of their chains.

The autobiographies of Booker T. Washington and Malcolm X framed white people in different ways. Booker T. Washington believed that white people and black people should work together. His Atlanta Exposition Address sought to “cement the friendship of the two races” (Washington 152). Booker T. Washington viewed white people not as an obstacle, but as someone that black people needed to prove themselves to. On the other hand, Malcolm X believed that “the white man is the devil” (X 1871). He saw white people as the oppressors that needed to be overcome. This meant not trying to become what white people would accept like Booker T. Washington suggested, but to instead be their own unique group free from the white person. 

These differences in their beliefs could have arisen due to the time periods they were born in. Booker T. Washington's formative years were right after the emancipation of the slaves where black people were hopeful that white people would allow them to gain equal rights. The debates during that time were shaped around this belief; they fought about how many rights they should have and how soon they should get them. Malcolm X, however, grew up in a time where these reforms failed to pass. Black people had already been fighting for their civil and human rights for decades but with little success. Because of the failure of achieving something meaningful , Malcolm X had a more cynical view on white people and their moral values. 

Works Cited

Washington, Booker T.. Up From Slavery: An Autobiography. A. L. Burt, 1901.

X, Malcolm, and Alex Haley. “The Autobiography of Malcolm X.” The Norton Anthology of African American Literature, Norton, 2003, pp. 1859-1876.