The Souls of Black Folk

In The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B Du Bois dealt with the needs of African Americans in order to thrive in their communities. He begins by emphasizing that the primary basic neccesities for African's should be the right to vote, education, and equality and justice from others. I was intrigued by his overview of the term he coined the "double consicousness", the idea that an individual views oneself based on the point of view of his/her peers. He goes on to convey the his message of the veil, his metaphor of black people's "second sight". The veil alludes to the view of the African American's of the opportunites they had in society and how it was vastly different from that of whites.

In the book, Du Bois reiterates the importance that black's obtain a classic education. He states that it is crucial for there to be an emergence of black leaders and instructors in order to factilitate the education for young African Americans and ensure that they can be treated equally among their white counterparts by receiving equally opportunites for success and growth. He believed in blacks forming an identity among their community and being able to develop essectial human culutures. Throughout his discussion of eductation he often criticizes the ideas of Booker Washington and his Atlanta Compromise. Washington conveys his idea of the importance for industrial training for blacks in order for them to obtain jobs and a lack of certain rights. Du Bois conversly stresses the importance of total equality for blacks. He goes on to argue for the existence of  black colleges in order to continue to foster the development of the standard for education as well as the new generation of African Americans. He states that "The worker must work for the glory of his handiwork, not simply for pay" (88).

Du Bois realizes however that such immediate success is impractical because many blacks will fail in their journies to attain social equivalence and high education. He recalls his experiences of his previous  job which involved  teaching in a community of individuals who thoroughly beleived in the veil. He noted that many of these people will struggle with their own personal hurdles as they try to adapt to society's norm. He points out many social problems that are prevalent amongst blacks. These involve segragation amonst themselves as well as the Black Belt which is a densely populated area of blacks. He also covers the segration that African Americans received from whites as well. He also states that the main reason for many black youth being involved in gangs and crime is the result of poor education that they received.

After reading The Souls of Black Folk I must say that I do believe with Du Bois opinions. I think that although drastic, they are necessary in order for African's to have the equality that they have today.