The Art of Association in the Thought of Washington and Du Bois

• In Event: July Fourth to Juneteenth: Black Engagement with America’s First Principles

Abstract

Tocqueville’s Democracy in America provided famous insights into the salience of voluntary associations in American social life to counteract the weaknesses of individualism. Although this idea has remained a rich topic in the history of political thought, a book-length study on its intellectual origins from the perspective of black thinkers has yet to be written. My paper, which is based on my current book project on this subject, addresses this theme in the political thought of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois by employing their varying conceptions of black civil society as a framework to understand their famous debate over whether blacks should prioritize industrial or classical education. Washington believed that black civil society should focus heavily, though not exclusively, on strengthening industrial associations as a necessary means for racial integration and social progress. Du Bois maintained that civil society institutions should place sharper emphasis on associations dedicated to classical education. Yet both thinkers ultimately recognized black civil society as an indispensable arena that gave blacks a sense of meaning, purpose, and belonging amid a racially hostile environment. My paper concludes with remarks on how Washington and Du Bois reflected and deepened Tocqueville’s account of the art of association.

Author

• Gregory Collins, Yale University