The Civil Rights Movement was a time where black men and women fought for racial justice. People dedicated their lives to making history by taking on the streets and advocating for change. Ella Josephine Baker was one of these people who fought for the lives of others, and herself.
Inspired by her grandparents' integrity, Baker constantly challenged racial and social injustices in America. Born in 1903, Baker’s upbringing became a base for her passion for societal reform. Baker’s grandparents faced slavery first-hand and they often had those hard discussions with Ella, which many black families still have to endure today.
These discussions are what drove Baker to fight for justice in any way that she could.
Listening to how her grandparents prevailed through these dark times caused her to have pride in her family and fight for others.
Baker attended college at Shaw University in North Carolina. In her efforts to further educate herself, she disputed school policies that she felt were unfair. Baker graduated from Shaw University at the top of her class and was valedictorian. Her time in college was greatly spent asking the important questions and challenging authority.
After college, Baker arrived in New York City where she witnessed the effects of the Great Depression. She soon discovered how people went through poverty and severe hardships, so she exposed herself to radical political activism that she became well known for. Baker began her journey when she joined the Young Negroes Cooperative League in 1930. She was committed to developing economic justice by using community resources to provide goods and services for black individuals.
Baker's strive for social justice didn't stop there. In 1940, she joined the fight against Jim Crow Laws and began her work in the NAACP. She worked her way up to the top and became the national director of the organization's various branches. One of her main focuses included working closely with the New York schools in order to improve the livelihood and education for black students.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott inspired Baker to further contribute to improving the circumstances in the deep South. In 1955, she co-founded the organization In Friendship, where she raised funds for the fight against Jim Crow Laws in the South. Baker then helped to coordinate Martin Luther King's new organization, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), while also leading a voter registration campaign called the Crusade for Citizenship.
The most prominent recognition Baker is known for in her lifetime is founding the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). In 1960, black scholars from North Carolina A&T University participated in a sit-in when they were denied service at a lunch counter. Baker viewed the young emerging activists as a vital role in the continuation of the movement, so she sat down with them and founded the SNCC. She believed in spreading a message with nonviolent activity and joined forces with activists from the Congress of Racial Equality. Together, they organized the 1961 Freedom Rides. The SNCC was a profound organization founded by Baker and its legacy continues to encourage black justice.
Ella Baker was truly a prominent figure in the Civil Rights Movement and she continues to inspire others today. Her active involvement in building up communities and advocating for social reform made her name well known among activists nationwide. Baker was often referred to as "Fundi," which is a Swahili for someone who passes down a craft to the next generation. This nickname is a perfect indication of the influence she had on the nation in the fight for civil rights. Ella Josephine Baker continued her family legacy by remaining resilient and fighting through times of uncertainty.
“In order for us as poor and oppressed people to become part of a society that is meaningful, the system under which we now exist has to be radically changed... It means facing a system that does not lend its self to your needs and devising means by which you change that system.” - Ella Baker
Writer and Editor: Angelica Vivas
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