Essay Sample about Ida B. Wells: Journalist and Suffragist in the Time of Jim Crow

Ida  B. Wells was born into slavery, during the Civil War, on July 6, 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi. When she was freed, Ida was educated at Rust University - which was a freedman school. A freedman’s school was a school that provided education for newly freed slaves during the Civil War. When Wells was 14 years old, she began to teach at a country school. She eventually moved to Memphis, Tennessee in 1884, and attended Fisk University in Nashville during summer sessions. 

In order to keep the Wells family together, Ida B. Wells picked up a teaching job in Memphis, Tennessee. While the students attending school were on summer break, Wells took college courses and began to write and edit for a local journal. When the students returned to school, Wells continued her passion for writing.

In 1887, The Tennessee Supreme Court reversed a circuit court decision, which ruled against Wells in a lawsuit that she brought against the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. One of the train cars which belonged to the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, removed Wells from her seat, because she was sitting in the whites only car. When she refused to move to the colored only car, she was dragged out of the car by white men. Having this experience, she started to reflect on the injustice among the black community. One of the things she thought about was her friends being murdered by white mobs. Due to this, she started a crusade against lynching. Eventually, she was forced to leave Memphis due to her decision. 

Ida B. Wells was unconvinced about the reason that black men, specifically had been lynched. Due to this, she started investigating several cases. Using her talent of journaling, she decided she would raise awareness about lynchings in the south. Once she gathered the information her cases gave her, she then wrote it in pamphlets and several columns in local newspapers (Norwood 1). She even exposed a lynching in 1892. Local white mobs became enraged, so they burned her press and drove her out of Memphis, Tennessee. She was ultimately forced to move to Chicago, Illinois. Once she arrived, she joined other Black leaders in calling for the boycott of the World’s Columbian Exposition. 

The World’s Columbian Exposition was a world’s celebration which took place in Chicago to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the New World in 1492. This celebration took place in Jackson Park. There was also a centerpiece, which is still present in today’s times.

In 1895, Wells married a famed Black lawyer, Ferdinand Barnett. Wells and Barnett had four children together. Throughout her career, Wells balanced motherhood with her activism (Norwood 2).

Lynchings among the Black community in the south were a crucial problem during this time period. To lynch someone is to hang them for an alleged offense with or without a legal trial. During that time, white people were not held accountable for lynching Black people. Today, this type of unjust behaviour still goes on, although not always by lynching. An example of this is the murder of a 25 year old man, Ahmaud Arbery. Arbery was murdered because of the color of his skin. White men in their neighborhood took the law into their own hands because they assumed that Mr. Arbery was trespassing at a vacant house. They chased and shot him to death with shotguns. If Ida B. Wells were alive today, she would still be fighting for justice, not just for the Black community, but for anyone affected by hate crimes. 

Today, there are several places to go that display the life of Ida B. Wells-Barnett. One of the places is the ‘Ida B. Wells-Barnett Museum.’ The Ida B. Wells Museum is located at the Sipres Boiling House on North Randolph Street and Salem Avenue in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Jim Wells, Ida B. Wells’ father, was a skilled craftsman, and also served as an apprentice carpenter during the constriction of the Spires Boiling House. During 1830 to 1860, many historic homes were built in Holly Springs. 

At UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media, there is a thing called ‘Ida B. Wells Society For Investigative Reporting.’ It is a national organization dedicated to increasing and retaining reporters and editors of color that also works to educate news organizations and journalists on how the inclusion of diverse voices can raise the caliber, impact, and visibility of investigative journalism as a means of promoting transparency and good government.

Ida B Wells truly has an everlasting legacy, that will continue to shine through anti-discriminatory practices. Citizens can continue to learn about her and the wonderful things she has done by going to places like the  Ida B. Wells-Barnett museum, to learn how she used investigative journalism to spread word about discrimination.

Black, Patti C. “Ida B. Wells: A Courageous Voice For Civil Rights.” Ida B. Wells: A courageous Voice For Civil Rights - 2001-02, Feb. 2001 < https://mshistorynow.mdah.ms.gov/issue/ida-b-wells-a-courageous-voice-for-civil-rights. >

“Ida B Wells-Barnett: American Journalist and Social Reformer.” Britannica. 2022. 

Fabiny, Sarah. Who was Ida B. Wells? New york: Who HQ Book, 2020.

Greer, Christina, Ted Ed. “How one journalist risked her life to hold murderers accountable.” 4:49. Feb 4, 2019.  https://youtube.com/watch?v=fygjGXnaV9w 

Walker, Malea. “Ida B. Wells and the Activism of Investigative Journalism.” Ida B. Wells and the activism of Investigative Journalism | Headlines and Heroes, 12 Feb. 2020. https://blogs.loc.gov/headlinesandheroes/2020/02/ida-b-wells-and-the-activism-of-investigative-journalism/