,the ,american ,negro ,academy ,occasional ,papers1 ,no4 #b4 ,the ,conservation of ,races4 ,,by ,w4 ,e4 ,,burghardt ,du ,,bois4 ,,washington1 ,d4 ,c4 ,published by the ,academy4 #ahig4 ,baptist ,magazine ,print1 ,washington1 ,d4 ,c4 ,orders may be sent to ,john ,h4 ,wills4 ,the ,boston ,cheap ,book ,store1 ,washington1 ,d4 ,c4 ,announcement ,the ,american ,negro ,academy believes that upon those of the race who have had the advantages of higher education and culture1 rests the responsibility of taking concerted steps for the employment of these agencies to uplift the race to higher planes of thought and action4 ,two great obstacles to this consummation are apparent3 7a7 ,the lack of unity1 want of harmony1 absence of a self-sacrificing spirit1 and no well-defined line of policy seeking definite aims2 and 7b7 ,the persistent1 relentless1 at times covert opposition employed to thwart the ,negro at every step of his upward struggles to establish the justness of his claim to the highest physical1 intellectual and moral possibilities4 ,the ,academy will1 therefore1 from time to time1 publish such papers as in their judgment aid1 by their broad and scholarly treatment of the topics discussed the dissemination of principles tending to the growth and development of the ,negro along right lines1 and the vindication of that race against vicious assaults4 ,,the ,,conservation ,,of ,,races4 ,the ,american ,negro has always felt an intense personal interest in discussions as to the origins and destinies of races3 primarily because back of most discussions of race with which he is familiar1 have lurked certain assumptions as to his natural abilities1 as to his political1 intellectual and moral status1 which he felt were wrong4 ,he has1 consequently1 been led to deprecate and minimize race distinctions1 to believe intensely that out of one blood ,god created all nations1 and to speak of human brotherhood as though it were the possibility of an already dawning to-morrow4 ,nevertheless1 in our calmer moments we must acknowledge that human beings are divided into races2 that in this country the two most extreme types of the world's races have met1 and the resulting problem as to the future relations of these types is not only of intense and living interest to us1 but forms an epoch in the history of mankind4 ,it is necessary1 therefore1 in planning our movements1 in guiding our future development1 that at times we rise above the pressing1 but smaller questions of separate schools and cars1 wage-discrimination and lynch law1 to survey the whole question of race in human philosophy and to lay1 on a basis of broad knowledge and careful insight1 those large lines of policy and higher ideals which may form our guiding lines and boundaries in the practical difficulties of every day4 ,for it is certain that all human striving must recognize the hard limits of natural law1 and that any striving1 no matter how intense and earnest1 which is against the constitution of the world1 is vain4 ,the question1 then1 which we must seriously consider is this3 ,what is the real meaning of ,race2 what has1 in the past1 been the law of race development1 and what lessons has the past history of race development to teach the rising ,negro people8 ,when we thus come to inquire into the essential difference of races we find it hard to come at once to any definite conclusion4 ,many criteria of race differences have in the past been proposed1 as color1 hair1 cranial measurements and language4 ,and manifestly1 in each of these respects1 human beings differ widely4 ,they vary in color1 for instance1 from the marble-like pallor of the ,scandinavian to the rich1 dark brown of the ,zulu1 passing by the creamy ,slav1 the yellow ,chinese1 the light brown ,sicilian and the brown ,egyptian4 ,men vary1 too1 in the texture of hair from the obstinately straight hair of the ,chinese to the obstinately tufted and frizzled hair of the ,bushman4 ,in measurement of heads1 again1 men vary2 from the broad-headed ,tartar to the medium-headed ,european and the narrow-headed ,hottentot2 or1 again in language1 from the highly-inflected ,roman tongue to the monosyllabic ,chinese4 ,all these physical characteristics are patent enough1 and if they agreed with each other it would be very easy to classify mankind4 ,unfortunately for scientists1 however1 these criteria of race are most exasperatingly intermingled4 ,color does not agree with texture of hair1 for many of the dark races have straight hair2 nor does color agree with the breadth of the head1 for the yellow ,tartar has a broader head than the ,german2 nor1 again1 has the science of language as yet succeeded in clearing up the relative authority of these various and contradictory criteria4 ,the final word of science1 so far1 is that we have at least two1 perhaps three1 great families of human beings--the whites and ,negroes1 possibly the yellow race4 ,that other races have arisen from the intermingling of the blood of these two4 ,this broad division of the world's races which men like ,huxley and ,raetzel have introduced as more nearly true than the old five-race scheme of ,blumenbach1 is nothing more than an acknowledgment that1 so far as purely physical characteristics are concerned1 the differences between men do not explain all the differences of their history4 ,it declares1 as ,darwin himself said1 that great as is the physical unlikeness of the various races of men their likenesses are greater1 and upon this rests the whole scientific doctrine of ,human ,brotherhood4 ,although the wonderful developments of human history teach that the grosser physical differences of color1 hair and bone go but a short way toward explaining the different roles which groups of men have played in ,human ,progress1 yet there are differences--subtle1 delicate and elusive1 though they may be--which have silently but definitely separated men into groups4 ,while these subtle forces have generally followed the natural cleavage of common blood1 descent and physical peculiarities1 they have at other times swept across and ignored these4 ,at all times1 however1 they have divided human beings into races1 which1 while they perhaps transcend scientific definition1 nevertheless1 are clearly defined to the eye of the ,historian and ,sociologist4 ,if this be true1 then the history of the world is the history1 not of individuals1 but of groups1 not of nations1 but of races1 and he who ignores or seeks to override the race idea in human history ignores and overrides the central thought of all history4 ,what1 then1 is a race8 ,it is a vast family of human beings1 generally of common blood and language1 always of common history1 traditions and impulses1 who are both voluntarily and involuntarily striving together for the accomplishment of certain more or less vividly conceived ideals of life4 ,turning to real history1 there can be no doubt1 first1 as to the widespread1 nay1 universal1 prevalence of the race idea1 the race spirit1 the race ideal1 and as to its efficiency as the vastest and most ingenious invention for human progress4 ,we1 who have been reared and trained under the individualistic philosophy of the ,declaration of ,independence and the laisser-faire philosophy of ,adam ,smith1 are loath to see and loath to acknowledge this patent fact of human history4 ,we see the ,pharaohs1 ,caesars1 ,toussaints and ,napoleons of history and forget the vast races of which they were but epitomized expressions4 ,we are apt to think in our ,american impatience1 that while it may have been true in the past that closed race groups made history1 that here in conglomerate ,america nous avons changer tout cela--we have changed all that1 and have no need of this ancient instrument of progress4 ,this assumption of which the ,negro people are especially fond1 can not be established by a careful consideration of history4 ,we find upon the world's stage today eight distinctly differentiated races1 in the sense in which ,history tells us the word must be used4 ,they are1 the ,slavs of eastern ,europe1 the ,teutons of middle ,europe1 the ,english of ,great ,britain and ,america1 the ,romance nations of ,southern and ,western ,europe1 the ,negroes of ,africa and ,america1 the ,semitic people of ,western ,asia and ,northern ,africa1 the ,hindoos of ,central ,asia and the ,mongolians of ,eastern ,asia4 ,there are1 of course1 other minor race groups1 as the ,american ,indians1 the ,esquimaux and the ,south ,sea ,islanders2 these larger races1 too1 are far from homogeneous2 the ,slav includes the ,czech1 the ,magyar1 the ,pole and the ,russian2 the ,teuton includes the ,german1 the ,scandinavian and the ,dutch2 the ,english include the ,scotch1 the ,irish and the conglomerate ,american4 ,under ,romance nations the widely-differing ,frenchman1 ,italian1 ,sicilian and ,spaniard are comprehended4 ,the term ,negro is1 perhaps1 the most indefinite of all1 combining the ,mulattoes and ,zamboes of ,america and the ,egyptians1 ,bantus and ,bushmen of ,africa4 ,among the ,hindoos are traces of widely differing nations1 while the great ,chinese1 ,tartar1 ,corean and ,japanese families fall under the one designation--,mongolian4 ,the question now is3 ,what is the real distinction between these nations8 ,is it the physical differences of blood1 color and cranial measurements8 ,certainly we must all acknowledge that physical differences play a great part1 and that1 with wide exceptions and qualifications1 these eight great races of to-day follow the cleavage of physical race distinctions2 the ,english and ,teuton represent the white variety of mankind2 the ,mongolian1 the yellow2 the ,negroes1 the black4 ,between these are many crosses and mixtures1 where ,mongolian and ,teuton have blended into the ,slav1 and other mixtures have produced the ,romance nations and the ,semites4 ,but while race differences have followed mainly physical race lines1 yet no mere physical distinctions would really define or explain the deeper differences--the cohesiveness and continuity of these groups4 ,the deeper differences are spiritual1 psychical1 differences--undoubtedly based on the physical1 but infinitely transcending them4 ,the forces that bind together the ,teuton nations are1 then1 first1 their race identity and common blood2 secondly1 and more important1 a common history1 common laws and religion1 similar habits of thought and a conscious striving together for certain ideals of life4 ,the whole process which has brought about these race differentiations has been a growth1 and the great characteristic of this growth has been the differentiation of spiritual and mental differences between great races of mankind and the integration of physical differences4 ,the age of nomadic tribes of closely related individuals represents the maximum of physical differences4 ,they were practically vast families1 and there were as many groups as families4 ,as the families came together to form cities the physical differences lessened1 purity of blood was replaced by the requirement of domicile1 and all who lived within the city bounds became gradually to be regarded as members of the group2 i4 e41 there was a slight and slow breaking down of physical barriers4 ,this1 however1 was accompanied by an increase of the spiritual and social differences between cities4 ,this city became husbandmen1 this1 merchants1 another warriors1 and so on4 ,the ideals of life for which the different cities struggled were different4 ,when at last cities began to coalesce into nations there was another breaking down of barriers which separated groups of men4 ,the larger and broader differences of color1 hair and physical proportions were not by any means ignored1 but myriads of minor differences disappeared1 and the sociological and historical races of men began to approximate the present division of races as indicated by physical researches4 ,at the same time the spiritual and physical differences of race groups which constituted the nations became deep and decisive4 ,the ,english nation stood for constitutional liberty and commercial freedom2 the ,german nation for science and philosophy2 the ,romance nations stood for literature and art1 and the other race groups are striving1 each in its own way1 to develope for civilization its particular message1 its particular ideal1 which shall help to guide the world nearer and nearer that perfection of human life for which we all long1 that one far off ,divine event4 ,this has been the function of race differences up to the present time4 ,what shall be its function in the future8 ,manifestly some of the great races of today--particularly the ,negro race--have not as yet given to civilization the full spiritual message which they are capable of giving4 ,i will not say that the ,negro race has as yet given no message to the world1 for it is still a mooted question among scientists as to just how far ,egyptian civilization was ,negro in its origin2 if it was not wholly ,negro1 it was certainly very closely allied4 ,be that as it may1 however the fact still remains that the full1 complete ,negro message of the whole ,negro race has not as yet been given to the world3 that the messages and ideal of the yellow race have not been completed1 and that the striving of the mighty ,slavs has but begun4 ,the question is1 then3 ,how shall this message be delivered2 how shall these various ideals be realized8 ,the answer is plain3 ,by the development of these race groups1 not as individuals1 but as races4 ,for the development of ,japanese genius1 ,japanese literature and art1 ,japanese spirit1 only ,japanese1 bound and welded together1 ,japanese inspired by one vast ideal1 can work out in its fullness the wonderful message which ,japan has for the nations of the earth4 ,for the development of ,negro genius1 of ,negro literature and art1 of ,negro spirit1 only ,negroes bound and welded together1 ,negroes inspired by one vast ideal1 can work out in its fullness the great message we have for humanity4 ,we cannot reverse history2 we are subject to the same natural laws as other races1 and if the ,negro is ever to be a factor in the world's history--if among the gaily-colored banners that deck the broad ramparts of civilization is to hang one uncompromising black1 then it must be placed there by black hands1 fashioned by black heads and hallowed by the travail of #bjj1jjj1jjj black hearts beating in one glad song of jubilee4 ,for this reason1 the advance guard of the ,negro people--the #h1jjj1jjj people of ,negro blood in the ,united ,states of ,america--must soon come to realize that if they are to take their just place in the van of ,pan-,negroism1 then their destiny is not absorption by the white ,americans4 ,that if in ,america it is to be proven for the first time in the modern world that not only ,negroes are capable of evolving individual men like ,toussaint1 the ,saviour1 but are a nation stored with wonderful possibilities of culture1 then their destiny is not a servile imitation of ,anglo-,saxon culture1 but a stalwart originality which shall unswervingly follow ,negro ideals4 ,it may1 however1 be objected here that the situation of our race in ,america renders this attitude impossible2 that our sole hope of salvation lies in our being able to lose our race identity in the commingled blood of the nation2 and that any other course would merely increase the friction of races which we call race prejudice1 and against which we have so long and so earnestly fought4 ,here1 then1 is the dilemma1 and it is a puzzling one1 ,i admit4 ,no ,negro who has given earnest thought to the situation of his people in ,america has failed1 at some time in life1 to find himself at these cross-roads2 has failed to ask himself at some time3 ,what1 after all1 am ,i8 ,am ,i an ,american or am ,i a ,negro8 ,can ,i be both8 ,or is it my duty to cease to be a ,negro as soon as possible and be an ,american8 ,if ,i strive as a ,negro1 am ,i not perpetuating the very cleft that threatens and separates ,black and ,white ,america8 ,is not my only possible practical aim the subduction of all that is ,negro in me to the ,american8 ,does my black blood place upon me any more obligation to assert my nationality than ,german1 or ,irish or ,italian blood would8 ,it is such incessant self-questioning and the hesitation that arises from it1 that is making the present period a time of vacillation and contradiction for the ,american ,negro2 combined race action is stifled1 race responsibility is shirked1 race enterprises languish1 and the best blood1 the best talent1 the best energy of the ,negro people cannot be marshalled to do the bidding of the race4 ,they stand back to make room for every rascal and demagogue who chooses to cloak his selfish deviltry under the veil of race pride4 ,is this right8 ,is it rational8 ,is it good policy8 ,have we in ,america a distinct mission as a race--a distinct sphere of action and an opportunity for race development1 or is self-obliteration the highest end to which ,negro blood dare aspire8 ,if we carefully consider what race prejudice really is1 we find it1 historically1 to be nothing but the friction between different groups of people2 it is the difference in aim1 in feeling1 in ideals of two different races2 if1 now1 this difference exists touching territory1 laws1 language1 or even religion1 it is manifest that these people cannot live in the same territory without fatal collision2 but if1 on the other hand1 there is substantial agreement in laws1 language and religion2 if there is a satisfactory adjustment of economic life1 then there is no reason why1 in the same country and on the same street1 two or three great national ideals might not thrive and develop1 that men of different races might not strive together for their race ideals as well1 perhaps even better1 than in isolation4 ,here1 it seems to me1 is the reading of the riddle that puzzles so many of us4 ,we are ,americans1 not only by birth and by citizenship1 but by our political ideals1 our language1 our religion4 ,farther than that1 our ,americanism does not go4 ,at that point1 we are ,negroes1 members of a vast historic race that from the very dawn of creation has slept1 but half awakening in the dark forests of its ,african fatherland4 ,we are the first fruits of this new nation1 the harbinger of that black to-morrow which is yet destined to soften the whiteness of the ,teutonic to-day4 ,we are that people whose subtle sense of song has given ,america its only ,american music1 its only ,american fairy tales1 its only touch of pathos and humor amid its mad money-getting plutocracy4 ,as such1 it is our duty to conserve our physical powers1 our intellectual endowments1 our spiritual ideals2 as a race we must strive by race organization1 by race solidarity1 by race unity to the realization of that broader humanity which freely recognizes differences in men1 but sternly deprecates inequality in their opportunities of development4 ,for the accomplishment of these ends we need race organizations3 ,negro colleges1 ,negro newspapers1 ,negro business organizations1 a ,negro school of literature and art1 and an intellectual clearing house1 for all these products of the ,negro mind1 which we may call a ,negro ,academy4 ,not only is all this necessary for positive advance1 it is absolutely imperative for negative defense4 ,let us not deceive ourselves at our situation in this country4 ,weighted with a heritage of moral iniquity from our past history1 hard pressed in the economic world by foreign immigrants and native prejudice1 hated here1 despised there and pitied everywhere2 our one haven of refuge is ourselves1 and but one means of advance1 our own belief in our great destiny1 our own implicit trust in our ability and worth4 ,there is no power under ,god's high heaven that can stop the advance of eight thousand thousand honest1 earnest1 inspired and united people4 ,but--and here is the rub--they must be honest1 fearlessly criticising their own faults1 zealously correcting them2 they must be earnest4 ,no people that laughs at itself1 and ridicules itself1 and wishes to ,god it was anything but itself ever wrote its name in history2 it must be inspired with the ,divine faith of our black mothers1 that out of the blood and dust of battle will march a victorious host1 a mighty nation1 a peculiar people1 to speak to the nations of earth a ,divine truth that shall make them free4 ,and such a people must be united2 not merely united for the organized theft of political spoils1 not united to disgrace religion with whoremongers and ward-heelers2 not united merely to protest and pass resolutions1 but united to stop the ravages of consumption among the ,negro people1 united to keep black boys from loafing1 gambling and crime2 united to guard the purity of black women and to reduce that vast army of black prostitutes that is today marching to hell2 and united in serious organizations1 to determine by careful conference and thoughtful interchange of opinion the broad lines of policy and action for the ,american ,negro4 ,this is the reason for being which the ,american ,negro ,academy has4 ,it aims at once to be the epitome and expression of the intellect of the black-blooded people of ,america1 the exponent of the race ideals of one of the world's great races4 ,as such1 the ,academy must1 if successful1 be 7a74 ,representative in character4 7b74 ,impartial in conduct4 7c74 ,firm in leadership4 ,it must be representative in character2 not in that it represents all interests or all factions1 but in that it seeks to comprise something of the best thought1 the most unselfish striving and the highest ideals4 ,there are scattered in forgotten nooks and corners throughout the land1 ,negroes of some considerable training1 of high minds1 and high motives1 who are unknown to their fellows1 who exert far too little influence4 ,these the ,negro ,academy should strive to bring into touch with each other and to give them a common mouthpiece4 ,the ,academy should be impartial in conduct2 while it aims to exalt the people it should aim to do so by truth--not by lies1 by honesty--not by flattery4 ,it should continually impress the fact upon the ,negro people that they must not expect to have things done for them--they ,,must ,,do ,,for ,,themselves2 that they have on their hands a vast work of self-reformation to do1 and that a little less complaint and whining1 and a little more dogged work and manly striving would do us more credit and benefit than a thousand ,force or ,civil ,rights bills4 ,finally1 the ,american ,negro ,academy must point out a practical path of advance to the ,negro people2 there lie before every ,negro today hundreds of questions of policy and right which must be settled and which each one settles now1 not in accordance with any rule1 but by impulse or individual preference2 for instance3 ,what should be the attitude of ,negroes toward the educational qualification for voters8 ,what should be our attitude toward separate schools8 ,how should we meet discriminations on railways and in hotels8 ,such questions need not so much specific answers for each part as a general expression of policy1 and nobody should be better fitted to announce such a policy than a representative honest ,negro ,academy4 ,all this1 however1 must come in time after careful organization and long conference4 ,the immediate work before us should be practical and have direct bearing upon the situation of the ,negro4 ,the historical work of collecting the laws of the ,united ,states and of the various ,states of the ,union with regard to the ,negro is a work of such magnitude and importance that no body but one like this could think of undertaking it4 ,if we could accomplish that one task we would justify our existence4 ,in the field of ,sociology an appalling work lies before us4 ,first1 we must unflinchingly and bravely face the truth1 not with apologies1 but with solemn earnestness4 ,the ,negro ,academy ought to sound a note of warning that would echo in every black cabin in the land3 ,unless we conquer our present vices they will conquer us2 we are diseased1 we are developing criminal tendencies1 and an alarmingly large percentage of our men and women are sexually impure4 ,the ,negro ,academy should stand and proclaim this over the housetops1 crying with ,garrison3 ,i will not equivocate1 ,i will not retreat a single inch1 and ,i will be heard4 ,the ,academy should seek to gather about it the talented1 unselfish men1 the pure and noble-minded women1 to fight an army of devils that disgraces our manhood and our womanhood4 ,there does not stand today upon ,god's earth a race more capable in muscle1 in intellect1 in morals1 than the ,american ,negro1 if he will bend his energies in the right direction2 if he will ,burst his birth's invidious bar ,and grasp the skirts of happy chance1 ,and breast the blows of circumstance1 ,and grapple with his evil star4 ,in science and morals1 ,i have indicated two fields of work for the ,academy4 ,finally1 in practical policy1 ,i wish to suggest the following ,academy ,creed3 #a4 ,we believe that the ,negro people1 as a race1 have a contribution to make to civilization and humanity1 which no other race can make4 #b4 ,we believe it the duty of the ,americans of ,negro descent1 as a body1 to maintain their race identity until this mission of the ,negro people is accomplished1 and the ideal of human brotherhood has become a practical possibility4 #c4 ,we believe that1 unless modern civilization is a failure1 it is entirely feasible and practicable for two races in such essential political1 economic and religious harmony as the white and colored people of ,america1 to develop side by side in peace and mutual happiness1 the peculiar contribution which each has to make to the culture of their common country4 #d4 ,as a means to this end we advocate1 not such social equality between these races as would disregard human likes and dislikes1 but such a social equilibrium as would1 throughout all the complicated relations of life1 give due and just consideration to culture1 ability1 and moral worth1 whether they be found under white or black skins4 #e4 ,we believe that the first and greatest step toward the settlement of the present friction between the races--commonly called the ,negro ,problem--lies in the correction of the immorality1 crime and laziness among the ,negroes themselves1 which still remains as a heritage from slavery4 ,we believe that only earnest and long continued efforts on our own part can cure these social ills4 #f4 ,we believe that the second great step toward a better adjustment of the relations between the races1 should be a more impartial selection of ability in the economic and intellectual world1 and a greater respect for personal liberty and worth1 regardless of race4 ,we believe that only earnest efforts on the part of the white people of this country will bring much needed reform in these matters4 #g4 ,on the basis of the foregoing declaration1 and firmly believing in our high destiny1 we1 as ,american ,negroes1 are resolved to strive in every honorable way for the realization of the best and highest aims1 for the development of strong manhood and pure womanhood1 and for the rearing of a race ideal in ,america and ,africa1 to the glory of ,god and the uplifting of the ,negro people4 ,w4 ,e4 ,,burghardt ,,du ,,bois4 ,transcriber's ,notes3 ,passages in italics are indicated by underscore4 ,the following misprints have been corrected3 menta corrected to mental 7page #h7 o2ganization corrected to organization 7page #ad7 ,other than the corrections listed above1 printer's spelling and hyphenation usage have been retained4