Celebrating Ida B. Wells

 

 

Thursday, July 16 was the 153rd anniversary of Ida B. Wells' birth. Ms. Wells was the original activist polymath. She applied her formidable intellect and journalistic skills to the unpopular project of ending state sanctioned tyranny against black people. She led the anti-lynching movement while also being a pioneer in civil rights, women's rights and free speech.

 

You can read Ida B. Wells' 1892 pamphlet "Southern Horrors: Lynch Laws in All Its Phases" at gutenberg. org  She dedicated the pamphlet to her zealous supporters. "To the Afro-American women of New York and Brooklyn, whose race love, and earnest zeal and unselfish effort at Lyric Hall, in the City of New York, on the night of October 5, 1892- made possible its publication, this pamphlet is gratefully dedicated by the author."

Wells was celebrated yesterday with tributes to her unwavering commitment to equality.

Hillary Crosley Coker at Jezebel wrote a well-researched and inspired article highlighting the history of Wells' activism.

Hark! A Vagrant posted a marvelous cartoon celebrating her relentless quest for justice.

Vox honored Wells for the way she used observable data about lynchings to craft a multifaceted approach to raising awareness and outrage about the practice.

Google honored her with a doodle.