Why were the policies of Booker T Washington acceptable to southerners?

Answer 1

Booker T. Washington did not push for equality. Instead, he pushed for practical skills and education that would improve the lot of his people. This was appreciated by southerners who believed this was an acknowledgement and reinforcement of their segregationist policies and white supremacist beliefs. W.E.B. Dubois, on the other hand, was a highly educated political activist who was the first black Ph.D. in the United States. He believe absolute equality was a necessity and was active in both the Niagara Movement as well as the founding of the N.A.A.C.P. He was considered a political radical at the time.