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Atlanta Compromise Speech

Definition

The Atlanta Compromise Speech was a speech given by Booker T. Washington in 1895 where he suggested that African Americans should accept segregation and disenfranchisement in exchange for economic progress and education.

Analogy

Think of the Atlanta Compromise Speech like a controversial peace treaty. It's as if two sides in a war agreed to stop fighting, but one side had to give up certain rights or freedoms. Not everyone agreed with this approach, much like not all parties agree with the terms of a peace treaty.

Related terms

Booker T. Washington: An influential African American leader who advocated for vocational training and economic self-reliance for African Americans, rather than pushing for immediate civil rights.

Jim Crow Laws: These were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States after the Reconstruction period until 1965.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): A landmark Supreme Court case that upheld racial segregation under the doctrine of "separate but equal."