Booker Taliaferro Washington (Booker T. Washington) was born (April 5, 1856 – November 14, 1915) a slave in Washington. Against all odds believe it or not Booker T. Washington grew up to be an astounding role model to the people of his time. One of his most recognizable accomplishments was being the founder of the Tuskegee Institute in 1881. Another accomplishment worth recognition was the establishment of the National Negro Business League in 1901. For some time he was an adviser to Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. Booker T. Washington biggest contributions were to the way he helped change the society around him. Booker T. Washington believed that in order for African Americans to integrate with the Caucasian community they must not choose the violent path and in order to find social stability; they should focus on educating themselves to make good use of themselves.
Researching information on Booker T. Washington and his contributions to society opened up my thoughts as to what makes civic and political participation important. I feel like civic and political participation are vital in a person’s life because doing so aids in harmony amongst the community. If there were no civic and…show more content… Washington was one of the most influential African American leaders in history. With all of his achievements, I most definitely believe that he deserves a well respected and celebrated holiday to reminisce about his struggles to benefit the African American culture. Booker T. Washington’s main prerogative was to convince African Americans that it is better to educate one’s self with knowledge rather than buy killing or using any forms of violence to be a part of the social society. He founded a few schools and programs whose goal is to aid in the progression of African American individuals and communities. What even makes things even more interesting is the fact that he did this during his Era and the effects are lasting even until this