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Ida B Wells Biography

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Ida B. Wells was born a slave in Holly Springs, Mississippi, on July 16, 1862. About six months after her birth, the Emancipation Proclamation was issued. Even though the document released slaves, the Wells family faced racial prejudices and were restricted by discriminatory rules and practices. Her father, James Wells was active in the Republican Party during Reconstruction. She received early schooling because her father’s position in government. Ida had to drop out of school at the age of 16, when a tragedy affected the family. Both of her parents and one of her siblings died in a yellow fever outbreak. Ida had to become responsible at a young age and cared for her other siblings. At the age of 16, she convinced a school administrator …show more content…

While the train crew was removing her, she bit one of the men on the hand. Ida sued the railroad company, winning a five-hundred-dollar settlement. However, the decision was overturned by the Tennessee Supreme Court. This injustice reached a personal turning point. Ida began to write about issues of race and politics in the South. Using a fake name “Iola,” various articles were published in black newspapers. Eventually, she became an owner of the Memphis Free Speech and Headlight and the Free Speech. Ida had many jobs to support her family. While working as journalist and publisher, she was a teacher in a segregated public school in Memphis. She became a harsh critic of the conditions in segregated schools. In 1891, she was fired from her job for the continuous attacks. She wanted to be involved after the murder of a friend and his two business associates. In 1892, three African American men owned a grocery store in Memphis. Their new business drew customers away from a white-owned store. The white owner and the African American men were always clashing back and forth with words. One night, the men guarded their store against white vandals and ended up shooting several of them. The African American men were

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