"(Hearth 1993, 55) Black people during this era would be lucky to have had the chance to learn to read and write well enough to sign their own names. Many blacks found colleges and institutions unsurprisingly unwelcoming. Although slavery was abolished many people still held the views that blacks were less than people. People were not happy to see them around; it was more of an absurd idea that a Negro could educate themselves. Black colleges and universities were very important path to success for blacks. It was a way to gain support from people who were in the same situation as you. These colleges were often private or were funded by a religious organization. Education and religion often went hand in hand in the black community. One of the schools founded under these projects was St Augustine's College. "The debate is ongoing, but for more than a century, black colleges have provided the foundation for achievement in African-American community."(Hearth 1996, 57) The Delany's lived right on the campus of the school so growing up at Saint Augustine's School, the Delaney's learned to "reach high." Bessie (Annie Elizabeth) was even named after Dr. Anna J. Cooper. Cooper was an educator and early advocate of higher education for black women. She was a graduate of St. Augustine's School and Oberlin College, and received a doctorate from the University of Paris in 1925. The first born from the family, Lemuel Thackara Delany was named after the white Episcopal priest who helped their Papa go to college. Education became a way of life for the Delany's. The Delany children spent their life growing up at St Augs. Education became an important part of their life; it was even as natural as eating or drinking. One statement that seemed really sad to me was, "it was a rare child that got such schooling!" It seems so harsh to me that people ever treated anybody the way they did. I know that in this day and age a good way to help people with racism is to teach.
