The influence of one man After the abolition of slavery, African-Americans worked to integrate into mainstream American society . During the 20th century, many African American civil rights leaders led the African American civil rights movement. All had different ideas and approaches to further improving the status of the African American individual with the goal of achieving civil equality. Civil rights pioneers of the 20th century were Booker T. Washington and WEB Dubois. We knew that their respected ideas contradicted each other. Malcolm X, a black supremacist was a member of the NOI (Nation of Islam) and based his teaching programs on religion. Martin Luther King Jr.'s approach to achieving equality was based on nonviolent actions. This proved to be the most effective way to consolidate through the legislature the civil rights of African Americans in America. With this solid, Martin Luther King Jr. was the most productive and influential African American civil rights leader within the civil rights movement. Booker T. Washington believed that by first gaining economic respect, civil rights for African Americans would slowly, but gradually, also gain. reached. Booker T. Washington founded Tuskegee Academy, an institution for African Americans. At Tuskegee Academy in Washington, says: "My plan was to have them taught, while performing this service, the latest and best methods of work, so that the school might not only benefit from their efforts, but that the students themselves can learn to work. see not only the utility of work, but also the beauty and dignity” (Washington, Up from Slavery, an Autobiography). Booker T. Washington accepted the fact of white supremacy. His ideas focused more...... middle of paper ......_and_freedom/>."Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-1956)." Montgomery bus boycott (1955-1956). Np, and Web. May 23, 2014. Washington, Booker T. Up from Slavery, an Autobiography. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1963. Print. “WEB Du Bois, 1868-1963: He fought for the civil rights of blacks. » VOA. Np, and Web. May 25, 2014. <http://learningenglish.voanews.com/content/a-23-2007-02-03-voa1-83135272/128013.html>Williams, Donnie and Wayne Greenhaw. The Thunder of the Angels: The Montgomery Bus Boycott and the People Who Broke Jim Crow's Back. Chicago: Lawrence Hill, 2006. Print. March 29, 1964 < http://www.wyzant.com/resources/lessons/history/hpol/malcolm-x/ballot-or-bullet>