--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice…" description: "\"Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice, he belittles the emasculating effects of caste distinctions, and opposes the higher training and ambitions of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/783/w-e-b-du-bois-2240_ambition_mr-washington-apologizes-for-injustice-h_2201353.jpg" --- # Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice, he belittles the… ![“Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice, he belittles the emasculating effects of caste distinctions, and opposes the higher training and ambitions of our brighter minds. The way for people to gain their reasonable rights is not by voluntarily throwing them away.” quote by W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/783/w-e-b-du-bois-2240_ambition_mr-washington-apologizes-for-injustice-h_2201353.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/783/w-e-b-du-bois-2240_ambition_mr-washington-apologizes-for-injustice-h_2201353.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/783/w-e-b-du-bois-2240_ambition_mr-washington-apologizes-for-injustice-h_2201353.jpg) > “Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice, he belittles the emasculating effects of caste distinctions, and opposes the higher training and ambitions of our brighter minds. The way for people to gain their reasonable rights is not by voluntarily throwing them away.” [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advocates for equality, rejecting caste‑like hierarchies and urging people to claim their rights rather than surrender them. **In simple terms:** Fight for rights, reject oppressive hierarchies. Key Takeaway Demand justice, don’t abandon it. Themes equality rights social justice Mood determined hopeful urgent Type philosophical political inspirational When to use this quote - Labor movements - education reform - political activism Key Concepts Caste system empowerment civil rights Questions to Reflect On - What rights are you willing to fight for? - How can marginalized groups organize without losing unity? A Different Perspective Counterpoint: Some may argue gradual change is safer; rapid demands can provoke backlash. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Apologizes Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apologizes-injustice-4836857/) [Apologizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apologizing/) [Belittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belittle/) [Brighter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brighter/) [Castes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/castes/) [Distinction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinction/) [Effects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effects/) [Fitness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitness/) [Gains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gains/) [Higher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/higher/) [Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustice/) [Injustice Belittles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustice-belittles-4836855/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Mr Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mr-washington-4836858/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Reasonable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reasonable/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Throwing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/throwing/) [Training](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/training/) [Washington Apologizes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/washington-apologizes-4836856/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [In 'Training Day,' Mr. Washington's dry-ice grandeur - the predator's reflexes contrasting with a pensive mouth - deserves regard, and his powerhouse virtuosity will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-mitchell/in-training-day-mr-washington-s-dry-ice-grandeur-the-predator-s/) [Elvis Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-mitchell/) > [All prejudices, whether of race, sect or sex, class pride and caste distinctions are the belittling inheritance and badge of snobs and prigs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-julia-cooper/all-prejudices-whether-of-race-sect-or-sex-class-pride-and-caste/) [Anna Julia Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-julia-cooper/) > [A person is bound to lose when he talks about himself; if he belittles himself, he is believed; if he praises himself, he isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/a-person-is-bound-to-lose-when-he-talks-about-himself-if-he-belittles/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [People want to know those details. They think it gives them greater insight into a piece of art, but when they approach a painting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/people-want-to-know-those-details-they-think-it-gives-them-greater/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [When my wife and I met, I couldn't talk to her - and my defense mechanism is sarcasm. I belittle someone with verbal pokes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-vogel/when-my-wife-and-i-met-i-couldn-t-talk-to-her-and-my-defense/) [Mike Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-vogel/) > [“And she looked upon the mirror that was given as a gift. She hated everything about it, from the circular size of it, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/and-she-looked-upon-the-mirror-that-was-given-as-a-gift-she-hated/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [“People will oppose your progress. They will remind you of your past failures, belittle you, etc. The only way to stand against such opposition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-s-mashego/people-will-oppose-your-progress-they-will-remind-you-of-your-past/) [D.S. Mashego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-s-mashego/) > [“People who belittle people, will be LITTLE people, and will accomplish very Little”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/people-who-belittle-people-will-be-little-people-and-will-accomplish/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [Besides, anyone with an Internet connection feels they have the credentials to critique or belittle anything these days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-colfer/besides-anyone-with-an-internet-connection-feels-they-have-the/) [Chris Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-colfer/) > [“Do not share your thoughts with people who think that what you are thinking is not worth thinking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/do-not-share-your-thoughts-with-people-who-think-that-what-you-are/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [The cross of Christ is the response of God to men for belittling His name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-chandler/the-cross-of-christ-is-the-response-of-god-to-men-for-belittling-his/) [Matt Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-chandler/) > [Occasionally, I like to select a mentor, a master, and let him guide me through a revision of one of my paintings... I try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rico-lebrun/occasionally-i-like-to-select-a-mentor-a-master-and-let-him-guide-me/) [Rico Lebrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rico-lebrun/) > [Do not, under any circumstances, belittle a work of fiction by trying to turn it into a carbon copy of real life; what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/do-not-under-any-circumstances-belittle-a-work-of-fiction-by-trying/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead just makes us mad. And those are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-belittle-us-they-do-something/) [Joanne Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-lipman/) > [Most adults would not dream of belittling, humiliating, or bullying (verbally or physically) another adult. But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) ## More by W. E. B. Du Bois > [So often do you see collegians enter life with high resolve and lofty purpose and then watch them shrink and shrink to sordid, selfish,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/so-often-do-you-see-collegians-enter-life-with-high-resolve-and-lofty/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [As a race, the Negroes are not lazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/as-a-race-the-negroes-are-not-lazy/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [If there is anybody in this land who thoroughly believes that the meek shall inherit the earth they have not often let their presence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/if-there-is-anybody-in-this-land-who-thoroughly-believes-that-the/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Men we shall have only as we make manhood the object of the work of the schools - intelligence, broad sympathy, knowledge of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/men-we-shall-have-only-as-we-make-manhood-the-object-of-the-work-of/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Had it not been for the race problem early thrust upon me and enveloping me, I should have probably been an unquestioning worshipper at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/had-it-not-been-for-the-race-problem-early-thrust-upon-me-and/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Before and after emancipation, the Negro, in self-defense, was propelled toward the white employer. The endowments of wealthy white men have developed great institutions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/before-and-after-emancipation-the-negro-in-self-defense-was-propelled/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [The use of slave women as day workers naturally broke up or made impossible the normal Negro home, and this and the slave code…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/the-use-of-slave-women-as-day-workers-naturally-broke-up-or-made/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Before the Civil War, the Negro was certainly as efficient a workman as the raw immigrant from Ireland or Germany. But, whereas the Irishmen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/before-the-civil-war-the-negro-was-certainly-as-efficient-a-workman/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [All art is propaganda, and ever must be, despite the wailing of the purists. I stand in utter shamelessness and say that whatever art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/all-art-is-propaganda-and-ever-must-be-despite-the-wailing-of-the/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [The ruling of men is the effort to direct the individual actions of many persons toward some end. This end theoretically should be the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/the-ruling-of-men-is-the-effort-to-direct-the-individual-actions-of/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Education is that whole system of human training within and without the school house walls, which molds and develops men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/education-is-that-whole-system-of-human-training-within-and-without/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [As Negro voting increased, Congress got an improved sense of hearing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/as-negro-voting-increased-congress-got-an-improved-sense-of-hearing/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [From the day of its birth, the anomaly of slavery plagued a nation which asserted the equality of all men, and sought to derive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/from-the-day-of-its-birth-the-anomaly-of-slavery-plagued-a-nation/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [It is the stars, it is the ancient stars, it is the young and everlasting stars!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/it-is-the-stars-it-is-the-ancient-stars-it-is-the-young-and/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense of always looking at one's self through the eyes of others, of measuring one's soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/it-is-a-peculiar-sensation-this-double-consciousness-this-sense-of/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) [Explore all 177 W. E. B. Du Bois quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) ## More Ambition quotes > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessye-norman/one-needs-more-than-ambition-and-talent-to-make-a-success-of-anything/) [Jessye Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessye-norman/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-worth-is-no-greater-than-the-worth-of-his-ambitions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [“I was ambitious and desperate to direct my first film, so I capitulated and blew it. Never again. Never fucking again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/i-was-ambitious-and-desperate-to-direct-my-first-film-so-i/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [I was always attracted most to joining City, and I am pleased to be at such a good club with such a big ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edin-dzeko/i-was-always-attracted-most-to-joining-city-and-i-am-pleased-to-be-at/) [Edin Dzeko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edin-dzeko/) > [Work towards your goal and dont watch the post size,its either they hate,or like you.there is no room for both sides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-buabeng/work-towards-your-goal-and-dont-watch-the-post-size-its-either-they/) [Isaac Buabeng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-buabeng/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [I play for high stakes and given an audience - there is no act too daring or too noble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-play-for-high-stakes-and-given-an-audience-there-is-no-act-too/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [There's nothing worse than a leader who lacks ambition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-worse-than-a-leader-who-lacks-ambition/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If i can't even protect my captain's dream, then whatever ambition i have is nothing but talk..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoro/if-i-can-t-even-protect-my-captain-s-dream-then-whatever-ambition-i/) [Zoro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoro/) > [It may seem unattainable but if you put actions, your heart and your mind into it, you will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-mond/it-may-seem-unattainable-but-if-you-put-actions-your-heart-and-your/) [London Mond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-mond/) > [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/) [Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/) [Browse all 4,601 Ambition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice, he belittles the emasculating effects of caste distinctions, and opposes the higher training and ambitions of our brighter minds. 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