Ella+Baker

Ella Baker was an incredible, hard working activist who help lead many groups during the civil rights movement. She grew up with inspiration to fight for social justice and nothing stopped her from doing so. Without Baker, there wouldn't have been such a big impact on the Civil Rights Movement and those activist groups.
 * by Ella, Grade 6 **

Ella Jo Baker born Dec. 13 1903 in Norfolk, Virginia, but grew up in North Carolina. Her grandma told stories about slavery that sparked her interest in social justice. Once, her grandma was whipped for refusing to marry a man. As a young Black girl, she never let people treat her rudely. When she was six, a white boy once called her the "n" word and she slapped him upside his head. Baker studied at Shaw University and graduated in 1929 as a valedictorian. She soon moved to NYC to soon join social activist groups.

Around 1940, Baker became field secretary of the NAACP. She traveled far and wide, searching for and recruiting new members. In 1946, Baker became the national director of the branches. She resigned a few years later to take care of her niece, and while living in NYC, she joined many local Black organizations and helped out in the NAACP New York branch.

Baker joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957. She became the executive director after MLK requested it. The SCLC was a civil rights group created by ministers and leaders in the community. Around the same time, she was helping to create the student activist group, SNCC, and when the group was created, Baker decided to leave the SCLC.

During Baker's years with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, or SNCC, she made a huge impact. She helped them make the Mississippi Freedom Party in 1964, which was made for Democrats and people who disagreed with the segregation that was going on. The group even tried to replace the Mississippi delegates with their party's delegates for the DNC in Atlantic city, and even though they failed their mission, it made people more aware of their cause.

Ella Baker was one of the most committed activists during the Civil Rights Movement. These were only a few out of her many activist groups that she joined or created. Even after her death - which was on her 83rd birthday in 1986 - people continued to live on her legacy through the many groups she worked with.