Ida B. Wells
By: Tre Jones
The Start......
Ida B. Wells was born into slavery, in Holly Springs, Mississippi on July 16, 1862. Her father was a carpenter and her mother a cook. They were treated well by there slave owner "Mr. Bolling." Ida B. Wells Family had to do anything that Mr. Bolling said, because there family could have been sold and separated at anytime. soon after president Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed Ida's family. She and her family weren't actually free until after the civil war though.
Seat on the Train
One day Ida B. Wells was taking a train ride. She bought a first-class ticket, but The first-class section was for white people only. when she boarded the train the conductor told her she had to move. Ida refused to move and was forced to leave her seat. She then sued the train company.
The Free Speech
Ida B. Wells began to write articles about the racial injustices of the South. At first she wrote articles for local newspapers and magazines. Then she began her own newspaper called the "Free Speech" where she wrote about racial segregation and discrimination.
Lynching
In 1892, one of Ida's friends, "Tom Moss," was arrested for murdering a white man. He was actually protecting him and his store from the man. He was hoping the judge would understand him, but before he could go to trial he was then lynched by a mob. Ida wrote about the lynching in her paper. This made many people mad. Ida went to New York to be safe. There I New York she worked for newspaper called the "New York Age." There she wrote about innocent African-Americans were being killed without a trial. over time this lowered the number of lynchings that occurred throughout the country.
Legacy
Ida B. Wells is remembered as one of the early leaders in the fight for African-American Civil Rights. Her campaign against lynching helped show the people of United States and the world that black live matter. she helped people realize that all lives matter. Ida died from kidney disease in Chicago on March 25, 1931.
Ida B. Wells Info
Email: Dubhouse86@gmail.com
Website: http://www.ducksters.com/history/civil_rights/ida_b_wells.php
Location: 3624 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr
Phone: 415-241-6315
Twitter: @g_raffe1