Founders of the Niagara Movement
|
Niagara Movement Facts for kids: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
about the Niagara Movement.
What was the Niagara Movement? The Niagara Movement
was the first organized African American
protest campaign in the 20th century and
comprised mainly of black intellectuals.
When was the Niagara Movement founded? The Niagara Movement was
founded during the week of July 9, 1905.
Who were the Niagara Movement founders?
The founders of the Niagara Movement were
William Edward Burghardt Du Bois and William
Monroe Trotter.
What was the Purpose and Main Goal of the
Niagara Movement?
The purpose and main goal of the Niagara
Movement was to fight for civil rights and
serve as a counterpoint to the political
docility and the accommodationist,
conciliatory ideas of Booker T. Washington
and other prominent African-American leaders
of the time.
Why was the Niagara Movement important?
The ideals of the Niagara Movement led to
the formation of the National Association
for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) in 1909.
The
Niagara Movement for kids: Opposition to Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington had a long term plan, believing
that African Americans should confine themselves to industrial
education and manual labor rather than political protest. Washington
is quoted as saying that “The wisest among my race understand
that the agitation of questions of social equality is the extremist
folly". Booker T. Washington was advocating the temporary compromise
of civil rights for economic opportunity. W. E. B. Du Bois at first
supported these views but as the years dragged by, and racial
violence and racial segregation continued, he became impatient for
change. Du Bois and twenty-eight elite African American
intellectuals and radical civil rights activists therefore formed the Niagara
Movement.
The Purpose of the
Niagara Movement
The purpose of the Niagara Movement
was to offer an alternative to the slow, accommodating, docile
policies of Booker T. Washington,
calling for agitation for equal economic opportunity and exercise of
full civil rights for African Americans. The Niagara Movement to
launch a campaign to challenge the
1896 Plessy vs.
Ferguson Case.
Plessy vs. Ferguson was extremely important legal case in which the
Supreme Court decided that "separate but equal" facilities satisfied
the guarantees of 14th Amendment, thus giving legal sanction to "Jim
Crow" segregation laws.
Niagara Movement Goals
The Niagara Movement
goals were to chart a new and more radical course to bring
about racial equality and
change by calling for full political, civil, and social rights for
African Americans. The goals of the Niagara movement were made
clear in a speech by W. E. B. Du Bois delivered at the second annual
meeting of the Niagara Movement at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia.
The speech summary is as follows:
"We claim for ourselves every
single right that belongs to a freeborn American, political, civil
and social; and until we get these rights we will never cease to
protest and assail the ears of America. The battle we wage is not
for ourselves alone but for all true Americans. It is a fight for
ideals, lest this, our common fatherland, false to its founding,
become in truth the land of the thief and the home of the slave -- a
byword and a hissing among the nations for its sounding pretensions
and pitiful accomplishment".
Click the following link for
the full text of the
Niagara
Movement Speech by W. E. B. Du Bois.
Niagara Movement Declaration of Principles
The Niagara Movement
declaration of principles was a powerful and clear statement of the
rights of African Americans that urged African Americans to protest
the limitation of civil rights, the denial of equal economic
opportunity, and denial of education. The authors of the Niagara
Movement Declaration of Principles also decried unhealthy living
conditions, discrimination in the military, discrimination in the
justice system, Jim Crow railroad cars, and other injustices to
African Americans. Click the following link for the full text
of the
Niagara Movement Declaration of
Principles.
Opposition and Decline of the
Niagara Movement
The Niagara Movement
was a short-lived organization (1905 - 1909) and was unable to
attract mass support due to organizational weakness and lack of
funds. There were disagreements within in the group and powerful
external opposition to the organization. Booker T. Washington
was a powerful and determined critic of the movement. Booker T.
Washington prevented many newspapers from printing the Niagara
Movement Declaration of Principles. The lack of publicity prevented
many African Americans from joining or contributing funds to the
Niagara Movement. The radical nature of the movement and the
forthright nature of their protest also contributed to the decline
of Niagara Movement. Internal
struggles, tensions and disagreements broke out within the group
between its leaders, W. E. B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter.
The two men disagreed over the admission of women to the
organization. W. E. B. Du Bois supported the idea, and William
Monroe Trotter opposed it, but eventually relented. By the end of
the summer of 1907 Trotter and his supporters grew disenchanted and
left the movement. Du Bois continued to lead the organization until
the formation of the NAACP in 1909.
Niagara Movement Importance
The ideals of the Niagara Movement led to the
formation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People (NAACP). The NAACP adopted many of the goals of the Niagara
movement and appointed its leader, W.E.B. Du Bois, as director of
publicity and research.
Black
History for kids: Important People and Events
For visitors interested in African American History
refer to Black History -
People and Events.
A useful resource for
teachers, kids, schools and colleges undertaking projects for the
Black History Month.
Niagara Movement Significance
The significance of the Niagara Movement was it led to
civil rights activism in the 20th century and led to the formation
of the NAACP that defended the rights of African Americans through
protest and lobbying against oppression and the publicizing of
injustice. The Niagara Movement was the cornerstone of the Modern
Civil Rights Era.
The Niagara Movement:
African American History
For visitors interested in the history of African
Americans refer to the following articles:
Black
History for kids: Important People and Events
For visitors interested in African American History
refer to
Black History - People and Events.
A useful resource for
teachers, kids, schools and colleges undertaking
projects for the Black History Month.
Niagara Movement for kids - President Theodore
Roosevelt Video
The article on the Niagara Movement provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office.
The following video will give you additional important facts and
dates about the political events experienced by the 26th American
President whose presidency spanned from September 14, 1901 to March
4, 1909.
Niagara Movement
●
Interesting Facts about Niagara Movement for kids and schools
●
Key events
and Niagara Movement for kids
●
The Niagara Movement, a major
event in US history
●
Theodore Roosevelt Presidency from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921
●
Fast, fun facts about the Niagara Movement
●
Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Theodore
Roosevelt
● Theodore Roosevelt Presidency and
Niagara Movement for schools,
homework, kids and children |