Today’s discussion of DuBois’ writing, “Conservation of Races” was a very interesting one. He offered a response to the previous philosopher’s belief that blacks had not made a significant contribution to society, as well as the history of humankind. DuBois’ response to this belief was that the future would be based on the forth coming contribution of blacks. DuBois’ arguments were based on the idea that in order for blacks to make this contribution, it is important that African Americans not assimilate but rather develop black owned, operated, and separate institutions. This idea supports his stance that it is on the shoulders of blacks alone to advance the race and make a contribution. This I feel has been a common stance for African American leaders throughout history and today, an idea that I fully support.
I don’t think that it is necessary to be completely separate as a race, but I do think that in order to make any real changes, that race must be at the forefront of the movement. This is true for all other movements whether based on race, class, gender, or sexual orientation; that group has to lead the movement. Unlike DuBois, I think that all members of the group should have a voice and can actively participate in the movement. DuBois deemed the blacks in America as the ‘Talented Tenth’ that would be responsible for the advancement and contribution of the Black Diaspora. While the times and nature of society has changed since DuBois published this article, I feel that some still share his belief. As was brought up in class, I have been commonly taught that DuBois meant the Talented Tenth to be the upper echelon, elite Blacks. This interpretation is what I continue to see today. The most educated, the wealthiest, and the most “advanced” of any group are looked up to and deemed responsible for the entire group.
The contributions of African Americans are range widely; traffic lights, automatic gear shift, the electric trolley, and air conditioner! But other contributions have shaped the arts, music, and culture of not only black America but America as a whole. The sources of these contributions are not limited to what we consider the “Talented Tenth” of African Americans, they include uneducated and poor African Americans. What we consider to be important in our society has determined what we consider to be valuable contributions, and who we consider to be productive members of our society. The talented tenth idea perpetuates the idea that the those uneducated and poor members of our society are not making valuable contributions to society but history in itself proves otherwise.
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If you think along the lines of how DuBois meant it, that is true. He deemed blacks in America to be the talented tenth of the black diaspora because they had access to the education and resources he thought necessary to make a contribution. If you think along these lines and associate it to the common interpretation of the talented tenth, it would lead you to believe that only the elite blacks in America are expected to make the contribution on behalf of the race. This is not to say that contributions by all others are not capable or any less significant, this perception just makes it not expected. Often seen as the exception to the rule
ReplyDeleteI really like this post and I have been wondering who exactly the "Talented Tenth" describes. I think that DuBois makes us assume that they are the elite, wealthy, educated African Americans. I also wonder what talents he is referring to exactly. Does he mean contributions art or does he mean the air conditioner? Both are important and have created changes in culture but I lean more towards art (although I am very grateful for the air conditioner) as a product of the Talented Tenth. I think what you said: "The talented tenth idea perpetuates the idea that the those uneducated and poor members of our society are not making valuable contributions to society but history in itself proves otherwise" is true.
ReplyDeleteAnnie makes a good point here that while Du Bois' message that African Americans must rise to make their contribution to history is a positive message, it excludes the majority of the race as he leaves history up to the "Talented Tenth." This is something that I kept thinking about in class as well. What about the rest of the race? Why are they incapable of making a contribution to society? All it takes is willpower, and I feel that DuBois' message while meant to be a positive one, also holds African Americans back as he depends on the Talented Tenth alone to create history.
ReplyDeleteI agree that DuBois probably considers the Talented Tenth to be the wealthy, elite, educated African Americans. I wonder, though, if he also is using the idea of the Talented Tenth as a way to inspire the poor, uneducated black Americans by instilling in them a sense of purposiveness that may be difficult to realize and act upon in settings (like slums and ghettos) with little promise of advancement.
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