Ella Baker facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ella Baker
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Baker in 1961
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| Born |
Ella Josephine Baker
December 13, 1903 Norfolk, Virginia, U.S.
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| Died | December 13, 1986 (aged 83) Manhattan, New York, U.S.
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| Occupation | Activist |
| Organization | NAACP (1938–1953) SCLC (1957–1960) SNCC (1960–1966) |
| Movement | Civil Rights Movement |
| Spouse(s) |
T. J. (Bob) Roberts
(m. 1938; div. 1958) |
Ella Josephine Baker (December 13, 1903 – December 13, 1986) was an African-American activist. She worked for civil rights and human rights for over 50 years. Ella Baker was a key organizer behind the scenes. She worked with famous leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. She also helped many young activists become leaders themselves.
Baker believed in "grassroots organizing." This means that change should come from everyday people working together. She thought that strong leaders were not always needed. Instead, she believed that people who were being treated unfairly could speak up for themselves. Her ideas were very important for the Civil Rights Movement. Many people call her one of the most important American leaders of the 20th century.
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Ella Baker's Early Life and School
Ella Josephine Baker was born on December 13, 1903. Her family lived in Norfolk, Virginia. When she was seven, her family moved to Littleton, North Carolina. This was her mother's hometown. Her father worked on a steamship, so he was often away.
As a child, Ella listened to her grandmother's stories. Her grandmother told her about being enslaved. These stories helped Ella understand unfairness. They taught her about the challenges black people faced. This gave her a strong sense of social justice.
Ella went to Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was a very good student and graduated at the top of her class. Years later, she returned to Shaw. She helped start the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) there.
Working in New York City
After college, Ella Baker moved to New York City. She worked for a newspaper called the Negro National News. In 1931, she joined a group called the Young Negroes Cooperative League (YNCL). This group wanted to help black communities build economic power. Ella soon became its national director.
She also taught classes about consumer rights and history. She was very active in Harlem. She protested against unfair actions in other countries. She also supported the "Scottsboro Boys" case. This was a famous case where black teenagers were wrongly accused.
Baker believed that local action was key to social change. She thought that people working together in their communities could make a big difference. Her ideas helped the Civil Rights Movement grow.
Working with the NAACP (1938–1953)
In 1938, Ella Baker started working with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). This was a major civil rights group. She traveled a lot, especially in the South. She helped local groups grow and raise money. In 1943, she became the director of branches. This made her the highest-ranking woman in the NAACP.
Baker believed that an organization's strength came from its members. She thought that local groups were the heart of the NAACP. She wanted to give more power to local leaders. She especially believed in the importance of young people and women.
While traveling, she met many black people. She stayed in their homes and ate with their families. She earned their trust and built strong connections. This helped her recruit more members. She created a network of people who would fight for civil rights. She treated everyone with respect, which helped her connect with people in the South.
In 1952, she became president of the NAACP's New York branch. She wanted to make the organization less focused on top leaders. She wanted to give more power to local groups. In 1953, she left the NAACP. She ran for the New York City Council but did not win.
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (1957–1960)
In 1957, Ella Baker helped start the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). This group was formed after the successful Montgomery Bus Boycott. The SCLC wanted to use nonviolent actions to fight for civil rights. They planned to use black churches as a base for their work.
Baker helped organize a big event called the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom. She showed how good she was at bringing different groups together. The SCLC's first big project was a voter registration campaign. It was called the Crusade for Citizenship. Baker was hired as the first staff member for the SCLC.
She worked closely with activists in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. She helped start voter registration drives. She also helped people identify other unfair issues in their communities. Their plan was to teach people about voting. They wanted to build local centers to stress the importance of voting.
Baker found her job with the SCLC difficult. She felt that the group was slow to act. She also thought that Martin Luther King Jr. was too far removed from everyday people. She believed he was a great speaker, but not always a leader who connected with everyone.
What is "Participatory Democracy"?
In the 1960s, a new idea became popular. It was called "participatory democracy". This idea meant that regular citizens should be directly involved in making decisions. It was about people taking action themselves.
This idea had three main points:
- Everyday people should be involved in making their own decisions.
- There should be less focus on leaders and experts.
- People should take direct action to solve problems.
Ella Baker explained her role: "You didn't see me on television, you didn't see news stories about me. The kind of role that I tried to play was to pick up pieces or put together pieces out of which I hoped organization might come. My theory is, strong people don't need strong leaders."
Baker believed in a group-centered way of leading. She thought that the Civil Rights Movement should not be like the black church. The church often had male leaders and mostly female members. Baker questioned this kind of leadership. She thought that everyone, especially women, should have a voice.
Baker believed that the "movement made Martin, and not Martin the movement." She encouraged activists to take control themselves. She did not want them to rely on one single leader. Her main idea was "power to the people." She believed that if people worked together, they could create big changes.
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (1960–1966)
In 1960, black college students started sit-ins to protest segregation. Ella Baker saw their energy. She convinced the SCLC to invite these students to a conference. This meeting was held at Shaw University. At this meeting, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC, pronounced "snick") was formed.
Baker saw that these young students could bring new life to the movement. She wanted them to stay independent from older leaders. She told them to be careful of focusing too much on one leader. Julian Bond, a SNCC leader, said her speech was "an eye opener."
SNCC became very active, especially in Mississippi. It was also open to women leaders. After the conference, Baker left the SCLC. She started working closely with SNCC. She became a trusted adult advisor. Many called her the "Godmother of SNCC."
In 1961, Baker helped SNCC create two parts. One part focused on direct action. The other part focused on voter registration. SNCC, with Baker's help, also organized the Freedom Rides in 1961. These rides challenged segregation on buses.
Ella Baker taught and mentored many young SNCC leaders. These included Julian Bond, Diane Nash, and Stokely Carmichael. Her ideas about group leadership spread. They influenced other student movements in the 1960s.
In 1964, Baker helped create the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP). This group was an alternative to the all-white Democratic Party in Mississippi. She went with the MFDP to the 1964 Democratic Party convention. The MFDP wanted to challenge the national party. They wanted black Americans to have the right to vote and participate in party elections. The MFDP was not seated, but their actions helped change rules. Later, more black leaders were elected in Mississippi.
Southern Conference Education Fund (1962–1967)
From 1962 to 1967, Baker worked for the Southern Conference Education Fund (SCEF). This group wanted black and white people to work together for justice. SCEF raised money for activists. It also tried to teach white southerners about the problems of racism.
Baker worked closely with her friend Anne Braden. Braden was a white activist who fought against racism. Baker defended Braden when she was unfairly accused of certain political beliefs. Baker encouraged SNCC to reject such accusations. She believed they caused division. During the 1960s, Baker spoke about connecting civil rights with civil liberties.
Ella Baker's Final Years
In 1967, Ella Baker moved back to New York City. She continued her activism there. She supported the "Free Angela" campaign in 1972. This campaign demanded the release of activist Angela Davis. Davis had been arrested in California.
Baker also supported the movement for Puerto Rican independence. She spoke out against apartheid in South Africa. Apartheid was a system of racial separation. She worked with women's groups too. Ella Baker remained an activist until she passed away. She died on December 13, 1986, which was her 83rd birthday.
Ella Baker was a very private person. Many people close to her did not know she was married for 20 years. She kept her own last name.
Ella Baker in Books and Films
- The 1981 film Fundi: The Story of Ella Baker showed her important role in the Civil Rights Movement.
- Bernice Johnson Reagon wrote a song called "Ella's Song" for the film.
- Many books have been written about Ella Baker. One is Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision by Barbara Ransby.
Honors and Legacy
- In 1984, Ella Baker received a Candace Award.
- Her writings and papers are kept at the New York Public Library.
- In 1994, Baker was put into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
- The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights was founded in 1996. It is named after her.
- The Ella Baker School in New York City was also founded in 1996.
- In 2009, Baker was honored on a U.S. postage stamp.
- In 2014, the University of California, Santa Barbara started a special professorship to honor her.
See also
In Spanish: Ella Baker para niños
