Racquel Turner

COM 321-01
Speech Criticism
Final Criticism Paper
April 21, 2014
Analysis of W.E.B. Du Bois's Negro Suffrage Document
In 1899, W.E.B. Du Bois conducted a sociological experiment on the condition of Negro
life in Philadelphia to gauge the successes and failures of universal suffrage as it applied to freed
slaves living in the north. In this document, Du Bois challenged whether Negro Suffrage was the
proper way for Congress to implement the inclusion of ex-slaves into the states of the Union. He
posited that a more suitable gesture would have been opportunities to earn an education and
economic proficiency through land ownership instead of the right to vote without proper
understanding of its power and utility. From a Neo Aristotelian perspective, Du Bois employed
numerous logical appeals to address why Negro Suffrage had failed to empower and secure a
political voice for African Americans at that time.
According to Realities of Negro Suffrage, the right to vote was ideally for those who were
considered the superior class of society, being generally white upper class males who owned
property and paid taxes. Blacks and indentured servants whose servitude expired and had
acquired land were included, although they represented an undersized minority. After the Civil
War, reform of the southern states as well as how to secure and empower nearly four million
newly freed slaves were the federal government next obstacles. Lincoln and Sumner believed
that suffrage would elevate and distinguish the possessors of it. As a result, Reconstruction laws
included the installation of universal voting rights to all males in all states. The concept of Negro

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suffrage was the product of their optimism and assurance in the free rule of government together
with impartiality for all free men regardless of the color of their skin.
In opposition to this notion were the remnants of the confederacy and their supremacy
stance towards their ex-captives. Southern states that had separated from the Union during the
Civil War were disenfranchised in addition to the loss of property and profits that were generated
from slavery. Consequently, freed slaves became the majority in those states and inherited the
voting power of most of the southern states. In order to reconnect with the Union states,
confederate states had to submit to the terms of reform which included the Reconstruction Acts
of 1867, consisting of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution.
Even with their acceptance of radical restructuring legislation, southern whites did not regain
their suffrage immediately, causing them to become the new minority in the south, with freed
blacks gaining control of southern states legislatures for the Republican Party.
According to History.com, the decade long span between 1865 through 1875 is recalled
by southern whites as being chastisement from the Union for their secessions during the war.
African Americans held the majority of the Republican votes by forming a coalition with white
northerners who relocated to the south, allegedly to capitalize on their naiveties under the guise
of assisting them with their political and civil agendas and white southerners who remained
faithful to the Union during the war. Known by the labels of carpetbaggers and scalawags, this
small group of opportunists took advantage of the ex slaves' suffrage by pretending to act in their
best interest with often corrupt intentions. As a result, violence, bribery, and mishandling of new
political powers deteriorated the black political agenda and allowed this group to gain control
over the county governments in the south.

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In addition to this, disenfranchised white southerners were reluctant to acquiesce to ex
slaves and their white allies' command of political dominance over the region they used to
control. The only way to ensure the return of the white majority was to employ tactics that would
suppress the Negro vote and dismantle their white associates. So came the creation of the Ku
Klux Klan, which was their answer to restoring order. They terrorized local governments and
took control of them by force. They suppressed suffrage through atrocious acts of hostility
towards blacks who attempted to exercise their voting rights during elections. Many were
lynched and beaten beyond recognition. Furthermore, the goal of reestablishing white supremacy
had been successful, reducing the Negro vote down to where it was not longer a threat to their
political status. These fear tactics also allowed whites to regain their influence in the local and
national governments in the south, while sending whites who aligned with blacks, running for
their safety. After the assassination of Lincoln, Negro suffrage was met with strong resistance
from the Ku Klux Klan. Southern states began to regain white political leadership and strength
through the collective strategy of voter suppression, which was mimicked in other localities until
the Negro vote was almost non existence. Andrew Johnson succeeded Lincoln as president and
with his new position came new reconstruction laws.
According to History.com, black codes were introduced in the south restricting freed
blacks' ability to choose their own job opportunities and forcing them into contracts that kept
them tied to an employer for a year or longer. Those who refused to commit to a labor contract
would be subjected to penalty laws created specifically to compel blacks back into manual labor
positions similar to those of slave labor. Vagrancy and jail time was the result of noncompliance,
along with being coerced back into unpaid labor positions held during slavery. Additionally, antienticement laws were introduced to forbid the practice of looking for new opportunities for better

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paying positions, while their current work contract was still in effect. This diminished their
ability to look for better paying skilled labor jobs or any other work outside of menial labor.
Johnson's black code laws gained popularity in the newly restored political system of the south
and were enforced by local and state police in conjunction with militia groups made up of exconfederate soldiers. These codes also resulted in the annihilation of Negro suffrage. Blacks saw
little to no improvement in their political, economic, and social statuses, due to the success of
relentless employment of suppression strategies by southern whites who resisted the ideology of
equal suffrage to all men. Consequently, the northern union states were angered with these
practices in the south. Since universal suffrage had failed in the south, and the north was
supportive of its initial inception during reconstruction, a better measure of its success or true
failure would be in a northern state.
Twenty four years had passed and Negro suffrage seemed to be a failed attempt. Sudden
termination of the black vote limited the time to prove that former slaves could exercise prudent
judgment when casting a vote independently. Without traditional political leaders with
experience, freed blacks fell victim to whites with bad intentions who took advantage of their
ignorance and voting rights. As a result, African Americans could not exercise their right to vote
based on individual choice and would spend several years disadvantaged without a voice in
local, state, and federal levels of government.
Du Bois's document Negro Suffrage outlined his logical assessments of the practicing
Negro voter. He began with noting that the purpose of enfranchisement was to be used as a shield
of protection for ex-slaves and empowerment for educated blacks who had acquired property
ownership but still did not have a voice in society. He explained that an education and property

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would have made newly freed persons more viable. Bestowing suffrage of this group without
them being equipped with knowledge of its utility seemed a bit hasty.
"The Significance of the Experiment.The indiscriminate granting of universal suffrage
to freedmen and foreigners was one of the most daring experiments of a too venturesome nation.
In the case of the Negro its only justification was that the ballot might serve as a weapon of
defense for helpless ex-slaves, and would at one stroke enfranchise those Negroes whose
education and standing entitled them to a voice in the government. There can be no doubt but
that the wisest provision would have been an educational and property qualification impartially
enforced against ex-slaves and immigrants. In the absence of such a provision it was certainly
more just to admit the untrained and ignorant than to bar out all Negroes in spite of their
qualifications; more just, but also more dangerous."
The south was in no shape to properly measure suffrage, as he pointed to the use of
suppression tactics and carpetbaggers (northerners who went south to profit from reform)
appointments to political office as the cause for suffrage failure in the southern states. This is Du
Bois's justification for the exanimation of a northern state, specifically Philadelphia, PA.
Those who from time to time have discussed the results of this experiment have usually
looked for their facts in the wrong place, i. e., in the South. Under the peculiar conditions still
prevailing in the South no fair trial of the Negro voter could have been made. The "carpet-bag"
governments of reconstruction time were in no true sense the creatures of Negro voters, nor is
there to-day a Southern State where free untrammeled Negro suffrage prevails. It is then to
Northern communities that one must turn to study the Negro as a voter, and the result of the
experiment in Pennsylvania while not decisive is certainly instructive."

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Du Bois criticized the Republicans at both the city and state levels for their untruthfulness
and lack of genuine concern for black voters who numbered four percent or less of registered
voters. He used logos appeals to dismantle how the black vote had become ineffective. Being
mentored under politicians whose agendas never favored blacks caused numerous problems for
black voters. He asserted that African Americans were being manipulated by Republicans the
same way Irish Americans were allegedly manipulated by Democrats. Republicans reasoned that
the Negro vote could be won by the party that supported reconstruction, resulting in blacks
giving their loyal support to them with their votes. Consequently, that loyalty was not
reciprocated, and as a result, black voters learned how to practice unethical politics for personal
gain.
Manifestly such a political atmosphere was the worst possible for the new untutored
voter. Starting himself without political ideals, he was put under the tutelage of unscrupulous and
dishonest men whose ideal of government was to prostitute it to their own private ends. As the
Irishman had been the tool of the Democrats, so the Negro became the tool of the Republicans. It
was natural that the freedman should vote for the party that emancipated him, and perhaps, too, it
was natural that a party with so sure a following, should use it unscrupulously. The result to be
expected from such a situation was that the Negro should learn from his surroundings a low ideal
of political morality and no conception of the real end of party loyalty. At the same time we
ought to expect individual exceptions to this general level, and some evidences of growth. "
Du Bois described three types of Negro voters that were birthed out of the exposure to
political corruption in Philadelphia, which are blind voters, purchasable voters, and independent
voters. Blind voters make up the majority of black voters. They did not inquire about the
Republican agenda and remained loyal to it. He contended that they still had a slave mentality

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that master knows what's best and they followed their political stance without understanding
whether or not it favored them. Next, he described the purchasable voter who were the next
largest group of blacks who lived in low income housing complexes and sold their vote to the
highest paying politicians. This category of blacks were part of the criminal element in the city
and while they dealt in many illegal activities, they received protection from arrests and financial
support for their vote. The third voter was the independent black citizen who understood the
power of their vote. They were a small group, but they wanted to use their right to create change
in their communities and in living conditions.
" Some Bad Results of Negro Suffrage.The experiment of Negro suffrage in
Philadelphia has developed three classes of Negro voters: a large majority of voters who vote
blindly at the dictates of the party and, while not open to direct bribery, accept the indirect
emoluments of office or influence in return for party loyalty; a considerable group, centering in
the slum districts, which casts a corrupt purchasable vote for the highest bidder; lastly, a very
small group of independent voters who seek to use their vote to better present conditions of
municipal life. "
Du Bois delved further into the enticement of the blind voters because there were many
black voters using votes to negotiate local office appointments only for the financial perks and
not to create actual change in their communities. White Republican Party leaders would secure
votes for their candidate through the appointments of usually well educated black males to local
government posts, who in return persuaded other black voters to back the white candidate, thus
securing the Negro vote. They would never inquire about agenda particulars and always casted
their votes in favor of the republican candidates. Du Bois referred to this as process as the
machine.

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A better known method of political bribery among the mass of Negroes is through
apportionment of the public work or appointment to public office. The work open to Negroes
throughout the city is greatly restricted as has been pointed out. One class of well-paid positions,
the city civil service, was once closed to them, and only one road was open to them to secure
these positions and that was unquestioning obedience to the "machine." The emoluments of
office are a temptation to most men, but how much greater they are for Negroes can only be
realized on reflection: Here is a well-educated young man, who despite all efforts can get no
work above that of porter at $6 or $8 a week. If he goes into "politics," blindly votes for the
candidate of the party boss, and by hard, steady and astute work persuades most of the colored
voters in his precinct to do the same, he has the chance of being rewarded by a city clerkship, the
social prestige of being in a position above menial labor, and an income of $60 or $75 a month.
Such is the character of the grasp which the "machine" has on even intelligent Negro voters.
Appointments to public work also increased blacks' economic statuses. Work restrictions
affected northern blacks as well, but they were not as severe in nature as those imposed on
southern blacks. Even for the well educated black person, jobs were limited for them too. When
the opportunity to earn a living equal to their skill set arose, a morality dilemma was created for
many black families with many succumbing to these offers for their blind loyalty.
After his logical analysis of the types of Negro voters, Du Bois discussed problems the
Negro voter was plagued with. The purchased voters brought dishonor to the Republican Party,
negating the whole point of Negro suffrage, which was for black people to vote independently
from their own choosing. The ignorance of the majority voters enslaved blacks to the republican
agenda and financially impaired those who took positions in exchange for economic perks.

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"In spite of the methods employed to secure these offices it cannot as yet justly be
charged that many of the Negro office-holders are unfitted for their duty. There is always the
possibility however that incompetent Negro officers may increase in number; and there can be no
doubt but that corrupt and dishonest white politicians have been kept in power by the influence
thus obtained to sway the Negro vote of the Seventh and Eighth and other wards. The problem of
the Negro voter then is one of the many problems that baffle all efforts at political reform in
Philadelphia: the small corrupt vote of the slums which disgraces republican government; the
large vote of the masses which mistaken political ideals, blind party loyalty and economic stress
now holds imprisoned and shackled to the service of dishonest political leaders. "
In spite of the numerous complaints of the failings of Negro suffrage, Du Bois expounded
on satisfactory outcomes found in Philadelphia. Though severely tainted, the Negro vote had
created some forms of civil liberties and protections. There was evidence of black civil
partisanships, which encouraged the pursuits of a better living and the rejection of being labeled
a dangerous, unskilled, deviant class of people.
"Some Good Results of Negro Suffrage.It is wrong to suppose that all the results of this
hazardous experiment in widening the franchise have been evil. First the ballot has without doubt
been a means of protection in the hands of a people peculiarly liable to oppression. Its first
bestowal gained Negroes admittance to street-cars after a struggle of a quarter century; and
frequently since private and public oppression has been lightened by the knowledge of the power
of the black vote. This fact has greatly increased the civic patriotism of the Negro, made him
strive more eagerly to adapt himself to the spirit of the city life, and has kept him from becoming
a socially dangerous class.

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Du Bois also pointed out that African Americans had never tried to use their vote to stir
up trouble. They always were supporting one position or another but never for evil intentions.
They were reluctant to support any other political stance outside of the Republican agenda. He
argued that ex-slave voters were the most conservative voters in Philadelphia at that time.
At the same time the Negro has never sought to use his ballot to menace civilization or
even the established principles of this government. This fact has been noticed by many students
but it deserves emphasis. Instead of being radical light-headed followers of every new political
panacea, the freedmen of Philadelphia and of the nation have always formed the most
conservative element in our political life and have steadfastly opposed the schemes of
inflationists, socialists and dreamers. Part of this conservatism may to be sure be the inertia of
ignorance, but even such inertia must anchor to some well-defined notions as to what the present
situation is; and no element of our political life seems better to comprehend the main lines of our
social organization than the Negro. In Philadelphia he has usually been allied with the better
elements although too often that "better" was far from the best. And never has the Negro been to
any extent the ally of the worst elements."
Though many black voters' motivations to run for office were not ideal, Du Bois said they
still held good public service records in their precincts. As a result, some were awarded for their
service and a few would work in public positions for several years consistently without incident.
Even black police officers were found to be worthy of the title and position.
"In spite of the fact that unworthy officials could easily get into office by the political
methods pursued by the Negroes, the average of those who have obtained office has been good.
Of the three colored councilmen one has received the endorsement of the Municipal League,
while the others seem to be up to the average of the councilmen. One Negro has been clerk in the

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tax office for twenty years or more and has an enviable record. The colored policemen as a class
are declared by their superiors to be capable, neat and efficient. There are some cases of
inefficiencyone clerk who used to be drunk most of his time, another who devotes his time to
work outside his office, and many cases of inefficient watchmen and laborers. The average of
efficiency among colored officeholders however is good and much higher than one might
naturally expect. "
Du Bois concluded his findings with noting that Negro voters are resilient despite the
negative consequences of corruption and ignorance and bribery. Negro suffrage was not a total
loss. Black voters were navigating the obstacles of resistance and were capable of securing voter
independent.
"Finally, the training in citizenship which the exercise of the right of suffrage entails has
not been lost on the Philadelphia Negro. Any worthy cause of municipal reform can secure a
respectable Negro vote in the city, showing that there is the germ of an intelligent independent
vote which rises above even the blandishments of decent remunerative employment. This class is
small but seems to be growing.... "
Du Bois's objective was to create an exigency within black voters to rethink the utility of
suffrage. Sadly, Negro voters were victims of exploitation. Knowledge fuels power.
Understanding of the utility of a vote eluded former slaves, because they were not given a chance
to establish themselves as voters. Du Bois focused on problems that blacks were failing to
confront. By classifying voters types, he plainly reflected the problem of their own inefficiency
back onto to them. There would now be no more excuses for continuing to be part of the problem
and not evolving into the solution.

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Du Bois stated that there were many well educated black voters who had attained some
political influence locally. He addressed this situation to bring discontentment and conviction to
those who were able to be in a position to use those powers of influence to better serve the Black
agenda. They had an obligation to represent those who had not accomplished the status they
enjoyed and it was unacceptable for them to have an education, but not put it to use by simply
turning a blind eye to their white political counterparts, although there were understandable
limitations to how much influence would be given to them in the political party. Overall, I think
that Du Bois was trying to persuade Black Philadelphians to become informed voters and stop
thinking like slaves, depending on white representation and develop into educated voters.
From an opposing viewpoint, Du Bois's expectations of former Negro slaves may have
been too ambitious. Negro suffrage had suffered such opposition in the south that it was
impossible for ex-slaves to establish themselves as a free voting class. Furthermore, northerners
who relocated to the south to capitalize on the reform effort caused considerable damage to an
already broken race. If northern whites would not have used this situation as an opportunity to
prosper themselves and really wanted universal suffrage to be successful, they could have done
so by actually receiving blacks into the Republican Party. Blacks could have been instructed on
what was expected of them as free citizens of this new Union. Once properly assimilated into the
citizenry, freed blacks could have been able to function within the basic premise of a free
American voter. Even this stance is overly ambitious, because of the southern white supremacy
stance against the ideology of any black person, whether educated or not, being comparable to
them by sharing equal citizenship, freedoms and due liberties. Due to these findings, it is
necessary to briefly revisit why there was so much opposition from southern whites towards
reconstruction.

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According to America's Reconstruction, all whites who resisted Reconstruction resented
the egalitarian policies that were being introduced by Lincoln. Southern whites resented the loss
of the local and state political influences of their former leaders. They absolutely refused to
accept freed blacks in those positions of authority. This new form of government was a constant
painful reminder of the confederacy's defeat. Additionally, the construction of schools and
financially viable expansions created spikes in tax payers' debt at both the state and local levels.
Consequently, white southerners began a Democratic campaign effort against all efforts in
support of equality, which included the use of caricatures of racists depictions that projected
their bigoted ideology onto the viewers of it. The hardest blow to Negro suffrage was the Ku
Klux Klan, whose goal was the total restoration of white domination in political, economic, and
social affairs in the south. They focused their terrorists strategies on the murdering of freed
blacks, white republicans who were allied with them, and teachers of black children. They also
made it impossible for blacks to cast their votes without fear of death.
By the1870s, efforts in support of Reconstruction began to fade, especially in the north,
where freed blacks received most of their support in favor of universal suffrage. Many of the
politicians that backed it in the past had been replaced by other candidates that were not
committed to the black equality agenda. As a result, Northerners had abandoned the ideology and
left blacks in the hands of their oppressors.
When a depression hit the states in 1873, resistance to Reconstruction flourished even
more, causing this effort to be lost in the shadow of their present economic distress. Racial unrest
grew to a new level in the south and overflowed into the north as well. The same northern
newspapers that once supported blacks now depicted them as wild animals unfit for politics. It
was apparent that the states were trying to wipe all reminders of Reconstruction from their

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memories, with both the north and south portraying freed blacks in racially demeaning
illustrations for political propaganda purposes. By 1876, Reconstruction attempts were
overthrown in all southern states and the Democrats ruled the south again. With the
consideration of the relapse of the North's support of Negro Suffrage, it does not seem fair for Du
Bois to have criticized black Philadelphians for conforming to their environment.
All endeavors to install freed slaves into the citizenry were bitterly rejected in many
forms, such as corrupt dealings to steal their votes, mishandling of their votes by those who
claimed to want to help them navigate the political process, to the most heinous acts of murder
for trying to exercise a right that was backed by the Constitution. These voters adapted to their
environments in order to survive the stance of the majority. They could not be expected to
generate a political voice, after being the victims of slavery for nearly 400 years, in only a ten
year period that was filled with deception and chaos.
In conclusion, it was a tragedy that Reconstruction was not fulfilled when it was initially
introduced by Lincoln and backed with its induction into the U.S. Constitution. Southerners
during that period had no respect for laws and consistently committed criminal acts of violence
without penalty. Innumerable lives were lost due to racists ideology of superior status. Du Bois
wrote this piece in 1899, twenty four years after the demise of Reconstruction. I was surprised by
the fact that there were still a few black voters who practice suffrage even with the deception
practices being used by the Republican Party in Philadelphia. Freed blacks took the hand that
they were dealt and made it work to their advantage. They had become products of their
environment.
Overall, I learned that my vote is priceless. It's my voice and it guarantees me a say in
politics. It is a dishonor when I do not exercise my right to vote. Many people lost their lives

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trying to practice this right. I will teach my children to exercise their right to vote also. Maybe in
doing so, we honor those who dreamt of the time when they could cast their votes without fear of
death or to even be able to privately consider who the best candidate worthy of their vote is. I
will keep this in mind every time I cast a vote.

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Works Cited
"America's Reconstruction: People and Politics after the Civil War."Digitalhistory.uh.edu. N.P.,
2003. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
"Black Codes." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2010. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Du Bois, W.E.B. "Negro Suffrage." Http://explorepahistory.com/. N.P., 2011. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.
Hart, Albert B. "The Realities of Negro Suffrage." American Political Science
Association (1909): 149-65. JSTOR. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.jstor.org/stable/3038377>.
Naidu, Suresh. "Anti-enticement Laws in the Postbellum Southern United States."The World of
Labour. N.P., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.