The Early Movement

In 1896, in the landmark Plessy v. Ferguson decision, the conservative Supreme Court upheld the racist policy of segregation by legalizing “separate but equal” facilities for blacks and whites. In doing so, the court condemned blacks to more than a half century more of social inequality. Black leaders nonetheless continued to press for equal rights. For example, Booker T. Washington, president of the all-black Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, encouraged African Americans first to become self-sufficient economically before challenging whites on social issues. W. E. B. Du Bois, a Harvard-educated black historian and sociologist, however, ridiculed Washington’s beliefs and argued that blacks should fight for social and economic equality all at once. Du Bois also hoped that blacks would eventually develop a “black consciousness” and cherish their distinctive history and cultural attributes. In 1910, he also helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to challenge the Plessy decision in the courtroom.

For a brief summary on Plessy v. Ferguson click on
Brief Summary
Court Case