Ida B. Wells: A Crusader For America

Introduction- Ida was an active crusader against lynching and a champion of social and political justice for African Americans. She was not a famous crusader for the cause but she did more than many know.

B. Schools and Universities she attended.

C. Tragedy that shook the Wells home.

II. Time period in which she lived (1862-1931)

A. Born right before the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation

B. Lived in a time of extreme prejudice and racism in the south.

A. Newspaper articles, expressing her ideas

IV. Why she wrote about racism and lynching

A. She wanted a reform of the treatment to African Americans in society.

B. She wanted to stop all violence against African Americans but especially lynchings.

1. She uncovered the men responsible for lynching and reported on the incidents.

2. Her print house was destroyed due to her discovery and she was run out of Memphis.

A. She helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

B. She never gave up for the reform of

lynching and violence on African Americans even while working on woman’s suffrage.

Ida wrote about these subjects because she wanted to make sure all that she experienced would end. Many things contributed to her great commitment to her cause. For example one day traveling from school Ida bought a first class ticket for a train but the conductor would not let her stay in first class just because she was African American. She did not move until she was physically forced out of the first class train and into the “Jim Crow” car. She did not take this incident easily she later sued the railroad company and won but her case was later overturned by the Tennessee Supreme Court. With that happening she was even more determined to fight racial injustice where ever she found it. Later she moved to Memphis, Tennessee where she became Co-owner and eventually full owner of a local newspaper, The Memphis Free Speech. As a writer she began to criticize the differences of treatment in schools between African Americans compared to whites she later lashed out against lynching and beatings of African Americans. After her friend was lynched she uncovered those responsible and her print house was wrecked and she was run out of Memphis. Even after that happened she did not abandon her cause, she still did all of her reports and research but under the pen name, “Lola” to protect her identity and secure her privacy and safety.

Some topics in this essay:
African Americans, Fisk University, African American, Colored People, Emancipation Proclamation, III Types, Ida Wells-Barnett, Rust College, african americans, Schools Universities, Conclusion- Ida, african american, ida wells-barnett, violence african americans, violence african, justice african americans, run memphis, newspaper articles, towards african, violence towards, lynching reform, towards african americans, national association advancement, active crusader lynching, association advancement,