Page 14 - Discover WINTER 2022

GREATNESS CONTINUED
of his people. He adamantly stuck to his personal
pledge that he would never become a public speaker
to enrich himself, but rather, to advance the causes
that he so dearly espoused.
His ethic also included a belief in being consistent
in his message; he resolved never to say anything
to a northern audience that he would not say to a
southern audience, and never to say anything to
a white audience that he would not say to a black
or mixed audience. His tried-and-true character
notwithstanding, Booker T. Washington often found
himself and his words at the center of controversy.
Some blacks resented his contention that
true justice could only result from a civilized and
respectful interaction between the races. He viewed
racism as a despicable, but inevitable obstacle to
overcome, and he chose to conquer it by going to
whatever lengths necessary to prove his worth. He
was therefore criticized as being too conciliatory,
and his detractors faulted him for not being more
politically active in the cause of civil rights.
Washington’s vision was that if the members of
his race were to demonstrate not only competence
but true value and worth to society, eventually they
would not only be tolerated, but warmly accepted
by their white brethren. He likewise feared that
political agitating and/or militant demands for civil
rights would produce resentment and fear. He argued
that by making themselves truly valuable, members
of his race could give their white neighbors a basis
not only for tolerating them, but for accepting them
and appreciating their presence, to the extent that
eventually, they would become necessary and desired
members of the nation’s social fabric. In Up From
Slavery, He quotes himself from one of his many
speeches on this topic:
In this address I said that the whole future of
the Negro rested largely upon the question as to
whether or not he should make himself, through his
skill, intelligence, and character, of such undeniable
value to the community in which he lived that the
community could not dispense with his presence. I
said that any individual who learned to do something
12 Discover Smith Mountain Lake WINTER 2021
better than anybody else--learned to do a common
thing in an uncommon manner--had solved his
problem, regardless of the colour of his skin, and that
in proportion as the Negro learned to produce what
other people wanted and must have, in the same
proportion would he be respected.
In his autobiography, Washington mentions that
sometimes his words were received poorly, and/
or misinterpreted by some people. This, he reports,
was often resolved by putting his words into proper
context, and in some cases, offering clarification of
his meaning.
One had only to look at the man’s extraordinary
accomplishments to see that there was more than
a little method to his alleged madness. A visit to
Tuskegee itself, and observation of the wonderful
relationship that the school had with its white
and black neighbors, would doubtless illustrate
Washington’s theories well beyond any simple words
that he could muster.
Today, Booker T. Washington is remembered
and honored here, at the place of his birth, with a
national monument to his memory. Situated on the
site of the old Burroughs Plantation, where he was
born, the Booker T. Washington National Monument
features a Plantation Trail, with a re-creation of the
log cabin where he spent his early years, a nature
trail, picnic facilities, and a visitor center with exhibits
chronicling his rise from slavery to educator, and
ultimately, a national leader.
The park is located on Rt 122 just East of
Westlake Corner, and is open seven days a
week, year-round, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (The
park is closed Thanksgiving Day, Dec. 25, and
Jan. 1, 2022.)
Tourists and school groups are encouraged
to prepare with a visit to the park’s website:
http://www.nps.gov/archive/bowa/index.htm