Ida B. Wells (1862 – 1931)

Journalist and activist, Ida B. Wells, published her findings on lynchings in pamphlets and local newspapers to shed light on the treatment of African Americans after the Civil War.

Wells was born July 16th, 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi, as an enslaved woman. After the end of the Civil War, Wells’ parents became politically active in the Reconstruction Era, instilling the importance of education to Wells. Wells enrolled at Rust College but was expelled due to a dispute with the university president. In 1878, both of Wells’ parents and her infant brother passed away due to yellow fever, leaving Wells alone to raise her siblings.

 After the lynching of one of her friends, Wells became skeptical for the reason of lynching and became focused on white mob violence. Wells set out to investigate and published her findings in pamphlets and in local newspapers. Enraged, the locals drove Wells out of Memphis, Tennessee and she was later forced to relocate to Chicago, Illinois due to threats. In 1893, Wells joined other African American leaders calling for a boycott of the World’s Columbian Exposition for locking out African Americans and negatively portraying the black community. Wells continued to bring attention to lynchings in America, as well as internationally.

Although ridiculed by white women, Wells remained active in the women’s rights movement. Wells went on to be the founder of the National Association of Colored Women’s Club, created to address issues of civil rights and women’s suffrage.