In order to preserve our rich history, I’m starting a historical spotlight to showcase some of the great inventors, scientists, revolutionaries, and figures of my ancestry. Today’s spotlight is all about Ida B. Wells.

Ida B. Wells, formally known as Ida B. Wells-Barnett, was born on July 16th, 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi as a slave during the Civil War. She was the oldest daughter of James and Lizzie Wells, and grew up to be a prominent journalist, activist, and researcher who challenged sexism, racism, and violence experienced by Black Americans throughout the South. 

She wasn’t the first in her family to stand up against injustice as her parents were politically active in Reconstruction Era politics. They also instilled in her the importance of education, which led to her becoming an excellent writer. Unfortunately, she lost both of her parents and her baby brother to a yellow fever epidemic that hit her hometown in 1878. 

As she was left to raise her other brothers and sister, she embodied the spirit of the Foundational Black American (FBA) by fighting through and persevering through that adversity. She decided to work hard to keep her family together by becoming a teacher and moving everyone to Memphis, Tennessee in hopes of better living conditions, wages, and opportunities. 

During that tumultuous time, Black Americans suffered unfair treatment that often included harassment, financial deprivation, and even death in some cases. In 1884, Ida filed a lawsuit against a train car company in Memphis for being thrown off a first-class train, despite having a ticket. She won the case and received a $500 settlement in a circuit case court, but the decision was eventually overturned by the Tennessee Supreme Court. One step forward, three steps backwards always seemed to be the sentiment during the time of revolution. 

While some may view it as a disappointment, it did, however, help strengthen her resolve for fighting the good fight. She turned her attention to calling out and stopping white mob violence after the unjust lynching of one of her friends. She questioned the reasons for all the lynchings and set out to investigate several cases which were published in a pamphlet with the name “Iola". Unfortunately, the same mob violence she worked hard to expose turned against her after her exposé about an 1892 lynching. The locals became enraged, threatened her, and burned her newspaper press down. She was thankfully in New York at the time of the incident, which more than likely saved her life. Eventually, the threats became so bad that she was forced to stay in the North and move to Chicago, Illinois. 

Despite moving, her work against injustice didn’t skip a beat. In 1893 she joined in the boycott of the World’s Columbian Exposition after the organization was accused of negatively portraying the black community. She also traveled internationally, speaking on the prevalence of lynching to foreign audiences. Not only did she confront white women in the suffrage movement who ignored lynching, but she also was a founder of the National Association of Colored Women’s Club created to address the important issues in women’s suffrage and civil rights. 

Ida wasn’t just an activist. She was also a wife to Ferdinand Barnett and a mother to four children. Even with her marriage, she challenged the status quo by being one of the first American women to keep her maiden name. She was able to balance motherhood with taking a stand and fighting against inequality experienced by the black community. Late in her career, she focused on urban reform in the growing city of Chicago before passing away on March 25th, 1931. 

Her spirit lives on in each of us. Whenever there’s a chance for us to fight against injustice or inequality, we have to be reminded and inspired by the greats who have paved the way before us. You never know who might be the next Ida B. Wells to make history.

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Signed, 

Jessica Marie