Because Du Bois was born free, he was able to attend a segregated public school, which gave him the education and means to attend a college. He rejected Booker T. Washington's theory of standing back and waiting for whites to accept African Americans. Du Bois believed that this plan would only perpetuate inequality and segregation. Dubois wanted the most talented ten percent of the African American population to be the factor of change in the status of African Americans. He wanted them to leave and get an education so they could return to their communities to teach the younger generation of black people. Unlike Booker T. Washington, Du Bois believed that these people should pursue a liberal arts education rather than an industrial one. A liberal degree would give men a purpose in life and broaden their horizons to think outside the box and help their community. In his speech, Du Bois declared: "If we make money the object of the training of men, we will train moneymakers, but not necessarily men." He didn't want African Americans to go out and make money, he wanted them to have a