Ida B. Wells-Barnett
Ida B. Wells-Barnett (1862-1931) was an American journalist, educator, and civil-rights pioneer, one of the most courageous investigative reporters and activists in American history. Born into slavery, she became a fearless crusader against lynching and a founding figure in the struggle for Black and women's rights.
Her groundbreaking investigative works, Southern Horrors and The Red Record, documented the brutal reality of lynching in the American South with rigorous evidence, exposing it to the nation and the world at enormous personal risk. Her reporting helped launch the anti-lynching movement and set a standard for fact-based advocacy journalism.
Wells was also a co-founder of the NAACP and a tireless campaigner for women's suffrage. Threatened, driven from her home, and often marginalised, she never stopped documenting the truth.
Our editions present her powerful writing clearly for modern readers. Read a selection free, and read or listen with a membership.
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Frequently asked questions about Ida B. Wells-Barnett
What did Ida B. Wells write?
Wells wrote pioneering investigative journalism and pamphlets against lynching, most famously Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases and The Red Record. She also wrote for and edited newspapers and left an autobiography, Crusade for Justice. Her anti-lynching works are her most important and influential writings.
What is The Red Record about?
The Red Record (1895) is Wells's meticulously documented study of lynching in the United States, compiling statistics and case after case to expose the scale and brutality of these racist murders and to dismantle the false justifications used to excuse them. It was one of the first works to treat lynching as a subject of rigorous investigation. It remains a landmark of investigative journalism and human-rights documentation.
Why is Ida B. Wells important?
Wells was a fearless investigative journalist who exposed the horror of lynching to the world when few others dared, at great personal risk. She helped found the NAACP, campaigned for women's suffrage, and pioneered evidence-based advocacy journalism. Her courage and her documentary methods make her a towering figure in American civil-rights and journalistic history.
Where should I start with Ida B. Wells?
Southern Horrors is a powerful and relatively short starting point, laying out her early case against lynching. The Red Record is her fuller, more detailed investigation. Both reveal her courage and her rigorous, fact-driven approach to confronting injustice.
Was Ida B. Wells born into slavery?
Yes — Wells was born enslaved in Mississippi in 1862, during the Civil War, and freed as a child by the Emancipation Proclamation. Orphaned young, she became a teacher and then a journalist, rising to national and international prominence through her fearless reporting. Her life spanned from slavery to the modern civil-rights struggle.
When did Ida B. Wells live?
Wells lived from 1862 to 1931. She began her anti-lynching crusade in the 1890s, publishing Southern Horrors in 1892 and The Red Record in 1895, and remained an activist and journalist for the rest of her life. She was a co-founder of the NAACP in 1909.
Where can I read Ida B. Wells for free?
Wells's major works are in the public domain and freely available. Older editions keep the original text. Here you can read a selection free in clear modern English, and read or listen with a membership.
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