Up from Slavery (Dover Thrift Editions: Black History) Paperback – Unabridged, October 4, 1995

Up From Slavery is a book by the prominent African-American leader Booker T. Washington. This book was so important that I had to include a discussion of it in my book: The Real Wakandas of Africa. He was a very important part of the Black community in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Up From Slavery is a must read for all who feel that people have the ability to succeed despite their circumstances. Booker T. Washington was born into slavery, yet he rose to become one of the leading Black figures of his day. Yearning to read at an early age, he took a journey by himself to go to school. Facing segregated facilities and without money, he had to work to pay for his travel (hundreds of miles away) to the school. Upon arriving at school he worked at the school to pay his way through school. Eventually, he established Tuskegee University and his students built many of the buildings there. Booker T. Washington is often looked down upon because he did not advocate publicly for voting rights. However, there is some evidence that he was funneling money to support voting rights campaigns. Marcus Garvey looked up to Booker T. Washington because he focused upon industry and upon controlling businesses in the black community. Up From Slavery is an important read along with other books like that of WEB Du Bois. In many ways his book serves as the foundation for the importance of black owned businesses. Despite its shortcomings, you will enjoy this book and the development of Booker T. Washington as he often presents himself as having the perfect solution for any given situation. If there was a shortcoming to Booker T. Washington, it was that he did not publicly advocate for political rights for Black people. Like Booker T. Washington‘s book, I also discuss the importance of economic development of black businesses in the African-American community in my book The Real Wakandas of Africa. However, unlike Washington I also discuss the rich history of Africa before slavery and before colonialism. Prior to slavery Africans performed surgery on the eye to remove cataracts 700 years ago. In Central Africa they conducted cesarean sections with antiseptics several hundred years before they were done anywhere else in the world. They smelted carbon steel 2000 years before the present and Africans built the tallest building in the world. This building stood as the tallest building for more than 4000 years. To add to this, Africans also constructed a wall for which I wrote a book called: The Great Wall of Africa: The Empire of Benin’s 10,000 Mile Long Wall. This wall would almost wrap around the United States of America. It is stories like these that are often missing from African-American history. Nevertheless, the book Up From Slavery by Booker T. Washington is a classic and a must read. It will keep you captivated with the life of Booker T. Washington as he struggled as a child to learn to read, pursued advanced degrees, and became a prominent Black leader in American society. Pick up a copy today!

Of several people in American history, I would like to have met Booker T. Washington. This book introduced me anew to a familiar group – Black Americans – as seen through the eyes of a former slave, a slave who propelled himself, through sheer determination, will, and hard work, to become the most prominent man of his race, who founded what is now the Tuskegee Institute, and who advised two US Presidents (Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft) on race relations in America. This book should be required reading for all high school students. It should especially be in the personal library of every Black American and everyone who thinks the world, or at least this country, owes him or her an entitlement of riches.“Up From Slavery” is a powerful testimony of courage. The author was born a slave in Virginia in 1856. As a child he witnessed the end of the Civil War (1865) and came to realize the importance of education and hard work. He attended the Hampton Institute which was an industrial school for blacks in Hampton, Virginia.Washington’s description of life as a slave and then as a free man is both vivid and compelling. Through his words we learn what it was like to live in a “home” with a dirt floor; to have no expectation of daily food; no clothing except what was being worn. Slaves at the time had only one name - their given name with no surname. In fact, after the Civil War and the new found freedom, one of the first things they did was to take a surname. What could this large group of oppressed and uneducated people, now freed from the bonds of slavery, do with their lives? Freedom meant they would be on their own and no longer living on the property of another. For the first time in their lives, they were able to exercise their God-given free will. But they were not prepared for this and many suffered as a result.Rather than bend to the harsh reality of his life as a freed slave, Washington focused on the value he offered to others. For example, he wrote: “I had rather be what I am, a member of the Negro race, than be able to claim membership with the most favored of any other race.” And “…mere connection with what is known as a superior race will not permanently carry an individual forward unless he has individual worth, and mere connection with what is regarded as an inferior race will not finally hold an individual back if he possesses intrinsic, individual merit.” This basic drive and his passion for education, training and hard work kept him grounded and focused throughout his life. As he stated it: “I think that the whole future of my race hinges on the question as to whether or not it can make itself of such indispensable value that the people in the town and the state where we reside will feel that our presence is necessary to the happiness and well-being of the community.”Washington died in 1915. He left an indelible mark on America, our society and on race relations. If Black American leaders decades later in American history, had taken lessons from him, our country and our racial relations would be better than they are today.

The young Booker T. Washington reminded me of Benjamin Franklin - very smart and he started his own library.An inspirational American success story.I listened to the CD and the guy who reads the book is fantastic.Everyone should read this book. It is eye-opening and inspirational.I'm a White conservative who was born in and lives in the South.Another book to check out is "Life and Times of Frederick Douglass". Frederick Douglass was born earlier and had an impact on ending slavery. An amazing guy.