How Did George Washington Carver Contribute To Civil Rights

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George Washington Carver was an important figure in both African American and agricultural progression who fought for civil rights and also showed that African Americans could be more than workers.

We go back to a time where civil rights weren’t accepted by much of the United States, we go to 1864 in Diamond, Missouri when two slaves were blessed with a baby boy named George, who would go on to be remembered for many positives things. While George would live a great life, it didn’t start out that way. At a young age George and his family were kidnapped by slave traders. Fortunately for George and his brother, James, were recovered by the family that originally owned them, the Carvers. Moses and Susan Carver would free and raise the boys as
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George was able to use this to further his early education even more. However, his intelligence didn’t seem to matter as much as the color of his skin to schools. He had to move around until he would find schools that would look past his skin color. Eventually, he graduated from Minneapolis High School and enrolled in Simpson College in Iowa as an art major. Soon after a professor encouraged him into transferring to Iowa State to major in agriculture.

After George got his master’s degree he was offered a job as a professor at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama by Booker T. Washington. George accepted and taught at Tuskegee for close to 20 years. While still a professor at Tuskegee, he started growing cotton alternatives such as peanuts, cowpeas, and sweet potatoes. For some reason Peanuts grabbed his attention more than the other two.

Peanuts don’t deplete soil as fast as cotton, so George started experimenting. George advised peanut producers and developed many uses for peanuts like as dyes, gasoline, and plastics. However, George never made a significant product or scientific theory. Also, a big misconception is that George invented peanut butter, which is