2. What did the church promise to the Crusaders in order to motivate them to fight?

The Catholic Church asked people to help their fellow Christians, those who were still alive and under persecution by the Muslim forces in the Holy Land, an plenary indulgence if they went on the Crusade to extend mercy on their fellow Christians.

What most people do not understand is that an indulgence had nothing to do with forgiveness of sins. Indulgences have been part of the Christian Church since the very early centuries when people asked others who were about to be killed by the Romans for their prayers.

Since then the theology of indulgences has not changed at all, although due to the unfortunate misunderstanding of Martin Luther, indulgences have been maligned and misunderstood since that time.

An indulgence can ONLY be gained by someone who is in a state of grace - all their sins forgiven already. NO ONE in a state of sin can earn an indulgence - not possible. An indulgence is a prayer of the Church or the saints for the remission of temporal punishment due for already forgiven sin. Thus it would be time off in purgatory, no one in a state of sin could earn an indulgence nor “earn” heaven - such an idea is atrocious and heresy.

booker t. washington was an educator who established the tuskegee institute. washington argued that african americans should learn trades that would offer them the opportunity to be progressive citizens. instead of fighting against discrimination, washington argued that african americans should use their education and knowledge to become self-sufficient in american society and not in competition with white americans.

w.e.b du bois was the founder of the niagara movement and later the naacp, du bois disagreed with washington. he argued that african americans should consistently fight for racial equality.

ida b. wells was a journalist who wrote about the horrors of lynching in the south. wells work could be considered muckraking as it led to the development of the anti-lynching campaign.