Episode Recording -- "A Blast into the Past"

Episode’s Main Topics:

0:51 - 04:16 Du Bois Throughout His Life and His Beliefs Vs. Booker T. Washington’s

W.E.B. Du Bois grew up after slavery in a relatively privileged environment, attending Fisk University and earning a PhD from Harvard. He became a prominent scholar and activist, writing extensively on Black life in America from historical and sociological perspectives. He recalled his first encounter with racism at an early age. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington were leading Black voices in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but they sharply disagreed on how African Americans should achieve progress. Washington, born enslaved, promoted vocational education and economic self-help, encouraging Black Americans to accept segregation temporarily. In contrast, Du Bois criticized Washington’s approach as promoting dangerous half-truths. Du Bois believed that systemic racism and slavery were central to Black struggles, and that while self-effort was important, real advancement required active support and intervention from the broader, wealthier society.

04:22 - 05:49 The Souls of Black Folk

The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois is a groundbreaking work that profoundly influenced conversations on race and identity in America. It was among the first intellectual works to challenge systemic racism while emphasizing the humanity and dignity of Black people. In the book, Du Bois introduces the powerful concepts of “double consciousness” and the “veil.” He describes the internal conflict African Americans experience, feeling divided between their identity as Americans and as Black individuals. Du Bois writes about the longing for a unified self — one that embraces both identities without losing either. These ideas remain central to understanding the Black experience in America.

05:56 - 7:40 The Effects on Civil Rights Movements

The Souls of Black Folk significantly influenced the Civil Rights Movement and global Black activism. It inspired figures like Marcus Garvey, who, though originally influenced by Booker T. Washington, shared elements of W.E.B. Du Bois’ vision. Du Bois, meanwhile, became a central figure in the Pan-African Movement, helping establish the Pan-African Association and contributing to its 1921 constitution, which focused on education, self-governance, and cultural development in Africa. His writings were widely recognized for their emotional power and authenticity. Through both his intellectual contributions and activism, Du Bois helped lay the foundation for future struggles for racial justice and empowerment worldwide.

00:00 - 00:17 Intro: sound effect

00:18 - 00:50 Reintroduction: The theme of today’s episode is “What is the significance of

W.E.B. Du Bois’ The Souls of Black Folk on Black life in the U.S. and how has it influenced

civil rights beliefs?” I will be talking about how Du Bois grew up and the education that he

received. How he became an activist is a very important influence for the books that he has

written. More specifically I will be discussing and diving into his book The Souls of Black Folk.

Then we will move onto how he affected Civil Rights movements.

Supporting Point 1:

00:51 - 1:32 Evidence A - William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was born in 1868 in Great

Barrington, Massachusetts, after slavery. He had lighter skin than most African Americans did at

the time. W.E.B. didn’t have to work for his education. He received his B.A. at Fisk University

and later went on to receive his PhD from Harvard University. After receiving his PhD he taught

at several universities. He also wrote multiple works on the history of Black life in the U.S. He

wrote these works from a historical and sociological aspect. He first attained international

acclaim through his participation in the First Pan-African Conference in 1990, (lecture notes).

01:33 - 01:57 Evidence B - Du Bois remembers being asked, “How does it feel to be a

problem?” by several white folks. He recalls the first time that he noticed his racial differences.

He was in school in New England when the boys and the girls wanted to buy visiting cards and

exchange them. One of the girls refused to accept his card and gave him an odd glace. It then

dawned on him that he was different from the others.

01:58 - 03:03 Evidence C - Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois were two very

influential Black leaders in the late 19th and early 20th century. They both had different views as

to how African Americans should achieve progress in the U.S. “Booker T. Washington, born

enslaved in Virginia in 1856, founded the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in 1881 and became a

leading advocate of African American progress”, (American Yawp). Booker T. Washington’s

philosophy was of accommodation and self-help. He believed Black Americans should focus on

vocational and industrial education to gain economic stability and prove their value to society.

He encouraged Black people to accept segregation and disenfranchisement for the time being, as

long as they were given access to education and economic opportunity. In his “Atlanta

Compromise” speech he says, “cast down your bucket where you are”, meaning that Black

people should improve their situation through hard work, not political agitation, (American

Yawp).03:04 - 03:38 Evidence D - Du Bois challenging Booker’s beliefs actually affected his career.

Audio snippet 27:45 - 28:15 (A recorded autobiography, 1961).

03:39 - 04:16 Evidence E - Washington believes that the South is justified in its current

treatment of Black people due to their social condition, the failure of Black advancement is due

to poor past education, and the Black progress is due mainly to their own efforts. Du Bois thinks

these views to be dangerous half-truths. He argues that slavery and racism are major causes of

the current condition, true educational progress takes time and depends on higher institutions

training Black teachers, and while self-help is important, real progress also depends on support

and encouragement from the broader society.

04:17 - 04:21 Optional Segue 1: sound effect

Supporting Point 2:

04:22 - 05:07 Evidence A - The Souls of Black Folk is one of W.E.B. Du Bois’ most influential

works. It shaped discussions on race and identity. It was one of the first works to confront

systemic racism intellectually while also highlighting Black humanity and dignity. Du Bois

further explains what it’s like to be a person of color living in duality. He states in The Souls of

Black Folk, “One ever feels his two-ness, – an American, a Negro; two warring ideals in one

dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being asunder”, (class lecture). Du Bois is

saying that African Americans constantly live in a sense of having two identities — they are both

American and Black.

05:08 - 05:51 Evidence B - Du Bois introduces the ideas of life behind the racial veil and the

concept of “double-consciousness.” “Double consciousness” is the experience of seeing oneself

through the perspective of others, which have become essential to discussions on race in

America. “The history of the American Negro is the history of this strife – this longing to attain

self-consious manhood, to merge his double self into a better and truer self. In this merging he

wishes neither of the older selves to be lost”, (The Souls of Black Folks). This is from The Souls

of Black Folk. He envisions a harmonized identity, one that embraces both without compromise

— a self that’s whole, proud, and fully recognized by society.

05:52 - 05:57 Optional Segue 2: sound effect

Supporting Point 3:

05:58 - 06:47 Evidence A - The Souls of Black Folk had tremendous effects on Civil Rights

movements. “Inspired by the writings of Booker T. Washington, Jamaican-born Marcus Garvey

became the most prominent Black Nationalist in the United States”, (American Yawp). He

founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association. Garvey had a vision for Pan-Africanism

that was similar to both Booker’s and Du Bois’. He encouraged economic self-sufficiency,political independence, and cultural pride. The UNIA encourages Black people to build their

own schools, businesses, and communities rather than depending on white-controlled systems.

Garvey is deeply critical of European imperialism and white supremacy, and he believes Black

people must take control of their own destinies.

06:48 - 07:14 Evidence B - Du Bois played a major role in the Pan-African Movement. The

Statuts (or statutes) are the formal constitution of the Pan-African Association, adopted in 1921

following the second Pan-African Congress. The document outlines the organization's mission,

membership, leadership structure, and goals. The key objectives were to encourage education

and culture and to support African-development and Self-government.

07:15 - 07:50 Evidence C - Du Bois’ works were known as real human documents. “Essay and

Poems Are Outpourings of Man Who Has Suffered Much”, is the name of a news article that was

published in 1920. The news article talks about how his work was advocating for so many

African Americans, “Dr. Du Bois is described as the spokesman for 200,000 men and women of

African Blood”, (The Charleston Daily Mail). This was stated in the Charleston Daily Mail.

W.E.B. Du Bois was seen as an exceptional man, and he would be whatever the composition of

his blood.

07:51 - 07:57 Optional Segue 3: sound effect

07:58 - 08:26 Outro: Today we learned about a very influential and powerful black leader that

changed the way that Black people saw themselves and how other people treated them. The Souls

of Black Folk explained what “double consciousness” is and the eternal battle for many African

Americans. Du Bois infiltrated many Civil Rights movements and had a great impact on the

Pan-African movement. In the next episode we will be learning about civil rights beliefs today

and look at the Black Lives Matter movement.

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08:30 - 08:41 Outro music