Booker T. Washington

In 1911, Booker T. Washington, a famed educator and preeminent African American leader, toured Texas to promote his ideas for African American advancement. During his visit to Austin, he spoke with local residents and students at Saint John's Orphan Home, Samuel Huston College, and Tillotson College. Although he wished to speak at the Texas State Capitol, the Texas Legislature refused him permission. On the evening of September 29, 1911, he addressed a crowd of between 5,000 and 7,000 people at Wooldridge Square, in a city whose population was then approximately 30,000, and Mayor A. P. Wooldridge welcomed him. Washington said he had come to the state to see for himself what progress African Americans were making with their opportunities, to observe relations between white and black people, and to encourage friendly and rational relations between them. His philosophy of racial uplift emphasized self-help, industrial education, acceptance of disfranchisement, and accommodation, putting him at odds with leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois, who argued for classical education and for full citizenship including social and political equality.

Austin, Texas · United States