Ida B. Wells & The Reconstruction of Race
The Reconstruction, also known as the period after the Civil War, lasted from 1865-1877 and was one of the most significant eras in American history. In addition to the South attempting to rejoin the Union, a woman named Ida B. Wells was an activist against lynching and led the early Civil Rights Movement during the reconstruction. In his novel, ‘They Say’ Ida B. Wells and the Reconstruction of Race, James West Davidson invites readers to experience the life of African Americans during the Reconstruction and why Ida B. Wells crusaded against lynching. Ida B. Wells was born on July 16, 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi raised by the well-respected James and Elizabeth Wells. The Wells became former …show more content…
On a train ride from Memphis to Nashville, Ida was treated with disrespect and unequal accommodation. Already purchasing a first-class ticket, Ida was forced by the conductor to sit in the “smoker” car, which had an awful odor and crowded with African Americans; Ida refused. According to Davidson, “the conductor grabbed her arm and tried to wrench her into the aisle…Ida leaned over and bit his hand” (70-71). She was escorted off the train by a group of men and humiliated in front of everyone. Furious as she was, Ida sued the railroad and won a total of $700 from both cases. This incident influenced Ida to become a journalist and activist for equal rights. She started off writing for church papers and soon began the editor of the Memphis Free Speech. Distinctive from numerous editors, Ida B. Wells, also known as Iola, wrote about the segregation, disenfranchisement, and the women’s page. A New Orleans “Iola was ‘brilliant and earnest…the most prominent correspondent at present connected with the Negro press…there is a brilliant and useful future opening before her” (107). In other words, Wells was a very prominent figure to African Americans during the reconstruction and had the ambition to …show more content…
As the co-owner of the Peoples Grocery store, Moss also took small roles as a mailman and Sunday school teacher at the local church; giving back to the community. Unfortunately, Moss was arrested and later lynched due to an incident that occurred near the grocery store. The headlines described Moss as a “‘turbulent, unruly negro’, one of a ‘nest of vipers’ who had planned a wholesale slaughter of white men and whose execution by a mob had been sharp, swift, and sure” (138). Whites accused Moss and his partners that they had planned for the “Bloody Riot,” thus leading to the killing of Moss, McDowell, and
The Reconstruction, also known as the period after the Civil War, lasted from 1865-1877 and was one of the most significant eras in American history. In addition to the South attempting to rejoin the Union, a woman named Ida B. Wells was an activist against lynching and led the early Civil Rights Movement during the reconstruction. In his novel, ‘They Say’ Ida B. Wells and the Reconstruction of Race, James West Davidson invites readers to experience the life of African Americans during the Reconstruction and why Ida B. Wells crusaded against lynching. Ida B. Wells was born on July 16, 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi raised by the well-respected James and Elizabeth Wells. The Wells became former …show more content…
On a train ride from Memphis to Nashville, Ida was treated with disrespect and unequal accommodation. Already purchasing a first-class ticket, Ida was forced by the conductor to sit in the “smoker” car, which had an awful odor and crowded with African Americans; Ida refused. According to Davidson, “the conductor grabbed her arm and tried to wrench her into the aisle…Ida leaned over and bit his hand” (70-71). She was escorted off the train by a group of men and humiliated in front of everyone. Furious as she was, Ida sued the railroad and won a total of $700 from both cases. This incident influenced Ida to become a journalist and activist for equal rights. She started off writing for church papers and soon began the editor of the Memphis Free Speech. Distinctive from numerous editors, Ida B. Wells, also known as Iola, wrote about the segregation, disenfranchisement, and the women’s page. A New Orleans “Iola was ‘brilliant and earnest…the most prominent correspondent at present connected with the Negro press…there is a brilliant and useful future opening before her” (107). In other words, Wells was a very prominent figure to African Americans during the reconstruction and had the ambition to …show more content…
As the co-owner of the Peoples Grocery store, Moss also took small roles as a mailman and Sunday school teacher at the local church; giving back to the community. Unfortunately, Moss was arrested and later lynched due to an incident that occurred near the grocery store. The headlines described Moss as a “‘turbulent, unruly negro’, one of a ‘nest of vipers’ who had planned a wholesale slaughter of white men and whose execution by a mob had been sharp, swift, and sure” (138). Whites accused Moss and his partners that they had planned for the “Bloody Riot,” thus leading to the killing of Moss, McDowell, and