In his discussion of
black nationalism in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the historian
Wilson Jeremiah Moses observes that "black separatism, or self-containment, which in its extreme form advocated the perpetual physical separation of the races, usually referred only to a simple institutional separatism, or the desire to see black people making independent efforts to sustain themselves in a proven hostile environment." Scholars Talmadge Anderson and James Stewart further make a distinction between the "classical version of Black separatism advocated by
Booker T. Washington" and "modern separatist ideology". They observe that "Washington's accommodationist advice" at the end of the nineteenth century "was for Blacks not to agitate for social, intellectual, and professional equality with Whites". By contrast, they observe, "contemporary separatists exhort Blacks not only to equal Whites but to surpass them as a tribute to and redemption of their African heritage." Anderson and Stewart add, moreover, that in general "modern black separatism is difficult to define because of its similarity to black nationalism."
Similarity to black nationalism There are similarities between
black nationalism and black separatism, mainly that they both advocate for the civil rights of black people. There are a few differences between them, however. Black separatists believe that black people should be physically separated from other races, primarily whites; black separatists would for example want a separate nation for black people. Examples of black separatist organizations include the
Nation of Islam and the
New Black Panther Party. This is slightly different from black nationalists because black nationalists do not always believe in a physical separation of black people. In some form, black nationalists do believe in separation, but not physical separation. Black nationalists focus more on
Black pride, justice, and identity. Their belief is that black people should be proud of their own skin, heritage, and beauty. They also believe that there should be justice for black people, especially in the United States. == Usage by the Southern Poverty Law Center ==