Race relations in America have always been hard and difficult. Great strides have been made during the past half century, despite the actions of various race hustlers like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and the NAACP leadership. To be sure, things are not perfect. Can they improve still? Perhaps. Can such areas as racial relations reach perfect harmony? Probably not, in our fallen, sinful world. But we are in a far better position, one that is the envy of human history, when it comes to the ability of different races and cultures within our country to get along.
What is the reason for this success? Was the path towards racial equality under the law through peaceful, quiet acts of kindness to others? Or was it through hard-charging activism? This is the perennial debate of the civil rights movement in America. Folks have this notion that the debate originates with Martin Luther King, Jr., on one side, and Malcolm X on the other. It doesn't. The debate presaged these two men by many, many years.
The progenitors of the debate are Frederick Douglass and the then-newly founded National Association for the Advancement of Colored Persons, or NAACP, on the more assertive side, and Booker T. Washington with his successor, George Washington Carver, on the other side.
While actions like lawsuits, and violent protests were the methods of the more assertive folks, a quiet heart of faith in God and service to others, was the method, and firm belief, belief of Washington, Carver, and their supporters. I want to be understood on one thing, I am not condemning the lawsuits and other marches of the civil rights movement. Quite the opposite, in fact. I am praising them, and praising the man responsible for them: George Washington Carver.
Here we get to the subject of the book being reviewed herein. George Washington Carver had an interesting life, to be sure. He was purchased by a white landowner in Missouri. After young George and his mother were kidnapped by slave traders, their owners hired a man to rescue the two of them. George was rescued, but the mother was never heard from again. George and his brother, who had escaped the kidnapping, were raised by the white family, not as slaves or servants, but as their own foster children.
His parents were truly kind and loving people, and helped to instill in George's heart a trust and willingness to look for the best in every situation. One would argue that this was the early moving of God's Holy Spirit on the young child's heart. Eventually, he met a caring woman who preached the Gospel to him. This woman was greatly used by God, not just in young Carver's life, but also in the history of our country.
This is because as George grew, and pursued more and more educational opportunities, and business opportunities, he always remembered what he had been taught. God has a plan for all of us, white or black, and if we did our best to fulfill them, he would bless us. Even if not in this life, in the next one. Indeed, even if we must wait for our reward until the next life, God could and would use us to bless others in this one through our behavior, and proper worship and obedience of Him.
This is the secret and the legacy that George Washington Carver left us all. He was very much in the vein of Booker T. Washington, and agreed with his outlook on how to help gain equality for black Americans. Their personal dynamic was often one of professional conflict between a very powerful personality as the principal of Tuskegee Institute in the person of Washington, and an equally powerful personality, though more softly-spoken, in Tuskegee's most gifted teacher, George Washington Carver.
Despite the sometimes conflict between the two men, they respected and loved each other. So much so that upon hearing of Booker T. Washington's death in 1915, Carver became despondent and horribly depressed. His class loads were temporarily taken over, and Carver only supervised study hall for a while.
However, Carver also was used by God, tended by Him, I believe. He now emerged from Washington's shadow, and became the conduit for the passive and active groups of the civil rights movements to come together. The reason that peaceful marches won out over violent marches in the '60's was due to Carver's lasting influence. The reason that the race riots that erupted across the United States following the end of World War I came to an end as soon as they did, and were rejected by so many whites and blacks, was due to Carver's example.
Even when he didn't speak on the issue of civil rights, Carver's personality and powerful personal testimony was such that he made a difference. While there was nothing wrong with Booker T. Washington, he was seen as a powerful presence, and isolated with wealthy white contributors. Carver, meanwhile, was sickly most of his long life, and had a small stature, soft, almost feminine or childlike voice, and was loving and kind in his demeanor.
This combination was due to his physical ailments, and his great faith in Christ. God had, I believe it is clear, prepared Carver for this moment. This moment when he could benefit others by showing a way to win over the respect of those who hate you through love. It is true that there have always been radical groups such as the Black Panthers and the like, but the reason that most of those who historically have fought for civil rights were a fusion of assertive folks like the NAACP, and passive folks like Washington and his intellectual persuasion, was George Washington Carver and his testimony for Christ.
Some of these conclusions are mine, working from the book, Christian Encounters: George Washington Carver by John Perry. Perry ably writes of the power of Carver's life. While reading this book, I felt shame at how I respond to others wrongly at times, when he did not.
The only issue with Perry's writing is how he still so obviously takes up for what he thinks is the "right" interpretations and actions historically. This was still better than in his book on Lee for The Generals series, in that it didn't depart from the point of the book. I also must say that I would have liked to know if he kept in touch with the Carvers or not. It would have added depth to the presentation of his life story.
All of that said, I was convicted and blessed by this book. I want to look to and trust the God of nature Who loved, inspired, and molded young George Washington Carver through the Word, the study of botany, and the love of his brothers and sisters in the Lord. I want to make a difference in the lives of others, as he did so well. With His help, I shall.
Highly Recommended.
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I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson Publishers. I am obligated to read it and give a review on my blog and on a commercial web site such as Amazon.com. Thomas Nelson emphasizes their desire for honest reviews, whether positive or negative, in order to help them create a better product. The opinions above are my honest viewpoint. I want to thank Thomas Nelson for allowing me to review this book, and thank you all for reading this.
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