# Booker T. Washington African American educator, author, and leader who founded the Tuskegee Institute in 1881 and became the most prominent Black public figure of his era. His "Atlanta Compromise" speech (1895) advocated economic self-improvement over direct political confrontation with [[Segregation]], drawing criticism from W.E.B. Du Bois and others who favored more assertive demands for equality. Modern conservatives selectively cite Washington's emphasis on self-reliance to argue against government intervention in the tradition of the [[Civil Rights Movement]]. *Stub — expand with: Washington-Du Bois debate, Tuskegee Machine, accommodation vs. activism, modern right-wing appropriation of his legacy.*