Born: 1903 (Norfolk, Virginia)
Biography:
Ella Josephine Baker, born on December 13, 1903, in Norfolk, Virginia, was an African-American civil rights and human rights activist. She would go on to become one of the most important American leaders of the twentieth century, playing a pivotal role in the civil rights movement. Known for her dedication to grassroots organizing, radical democracy, and empowering the oppressed, Baker’s career spanned over five decades, during which she worked alongside some of the most prominent civil rights leaders of her time.
Raised in Norfolk, Ella Baker was the second of three surviving children. Her father worked on a steamship line, often leaving the family in his absence. Her mother, Georgiana, took in boarders to earn extra money. In 1910, Norfolk experienced a race riot, during which whites attacked black workers. Seeking safety, Baker’s mother decided to move the family back to North Carolina, where she had grown up. It was there, in her grandmother’s rural hometown near Littleton, that Baker developed a keen sense of social injustice.
Listening to her grandmother, Josephine Elizabeth Bet Ross, recount stories about slavery and escaping the oppressive society of the South, Ella Baker gained an understanding of the hardships faced by African-Americans. Her grandmother’s experiences, including being beaten and whipped for refusing to marry an enslaved man of her owner’s choice, provided Baker with context and fueled her determination to fight against injustice.
Baker attended Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she excelled academically and graduated with valedictorian honors. Years later, she returned to Shaw to help establish the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). This organization, which would become one of the most prominent civil rights groups, aimed to empower African-American students and foster social change through nonviolent means.
Throughout her career, Baker had the opportunity to work with influential civil rights leaders such as W. E. B. Du Bois, Thurgood Marshall, A. Philip Randolph, and Martin Luther King Jr. However, she was a largely behind-the-scenes organizer, often in the shadows of these well-known figures. Nevertheless, Baker’s influence on the movement was significant.
As the primary advisor and strategist of the SNCC, Baker played a crucial role in shaping their direction and focus. She challenged the notion of charismatic and professionalized leadership, advocating instead for grassroots organizing and the empowerment of the oppressed to advocate for themselves. Baker’s vision was realized most fully in the 1960s, within the context of the civil rights movement, where she promoted radical democracy and the ability of individuals to understand their own worlds.
Not only was Ella Baker a prominent civil rights activist, but she was also a vocal critic of racism within American culture and sexism within the civil rights movement. Her dedication to equality and justice paved the way for future generations of activists. Barbara Ransby, her biographer, described her as one of the most important American leaders of the twentieth century and perhaps the most influential woman in the civil rights movement.