Jim Crow laws were in full bloom in the post-civil war South, and so was reactionary violence by marginalized African-Americans. The sides polarized, with many whites trying to keep descendants of slaves as close as possible to the former position, while African-Americans were striking for complete equality and suffrage. To break the deadlock, African-American spokesman and leader Booker T. Washington agreed to speak to the mostly white audience at the Cotton States and International Exposition, promoting Southern commerce, in Atlanta.

On this day, September 19, in 1895, ignoring the obvious discomfort and the occasional racial epithet launched when convention audience first saw him, Booker T. Washington delivered his “Atlanta Compromise” speech, charting a middle course between the demands of the two sides.

Washington suggested allowing African-Americans access to basic education and rule of law, in exchange for an end to claims for full integration and equality. In the highlight of his eloquent speech, he raise his hand high in the air, saying “In all things that are purely social we can be as separate as the finger yet one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress.” Acclaimed by both blacks and whites in the audience and throughout, his speech, many felt, marked a turning point in race relations.