Ida B. Wells
Ida B. Wells (1862–1931) was an African American activist and journalist whose work focused on exposing and putting an end to violent crimes against African Americans, especially lynching. Wells was born in Mississippi and began her career in journalism after suing the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad for forcibly removing her from a whites-only railroad car. In 1889, she bought an interest in and became editor of the Memphis Free Speech. In 1892, after a triple lynching in Memphis, Wells began an editorial campaign to address the violence. Wells’s anti-lynching work earned her threats of violence, and her office was attacked by a mob while she was out of town. Wells later moved to Chicago and continued investigating, writing about, and speaking out against lynching.
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