Ida B. Wells

Google doodle honoring Ida b. Wells. 

Black History Month Day 14, Creating your own

Ida Barnett Wells was born during the era of slavery and lived during the emancipation of enslaved African-Americans. Wells would live to witness the birth of Jim Crow laws which prevented African-Americans from enjoying true liberation. The laws were a reminder of Abraham Lincoln words for African-Americans, they were "free but not equal". Neither words, free or equal applied to African-American women. Wells experienced this silence on her intersectional position of being both an African-American and a woman from enforcement of the United States Constitution. As an educated African-American woman, Wells discovered evem with the new provisions within the document did not and would not protect an African-American woman from being manhandled by raced white men. Who battled for the rights of African-American woman?

The fight would becomes Wells.


One day, Wells was asked to move to another section of the train. Wells, was told to move into a smoking section. But that day, Wells must have understood that this demand was not only an insult as a citizen but a threat against her as a woman. Wells refused to move and was thrown off the train. This light bulb moment would illuminate a different path for the teacher she was trained to be. Wells would now take on  a life time crusade against not only discrimination against African-Americans but for legal protection for African-American women. 

Wells would have to channel the messages from both former crusaders Sojourner Truth and Maria Stewart. It could not be left up to raced whites as Sojourner Truth pointed out, in defining womanhood when she asked "Ain't I A Woman ?" in order to be acknowledged by raced white males. Stewart stated that it was up to the African-American woman to define what it meant to be a woman. Wells' battle plan would have to fuse the two together and crafted a newspaper by a woman about African-Americans. 

Wells' newspaper, the Free Speech would tell about the injustices committed against her as an African-American woman. This same newspaper would later chronicle the horrible lynchings that were occurring in the south. Wells newspaper documented the number of lynchings that were occurring under the passive Separate but Equal doctrine. One of her report tell about an incident of lynching involving her friends and another the torturing of a man accused of raping a raced white young female. The lynching was a public event with witnesses collecting souvenirs. 

Wells reports showcased the South total disregard for human life. Wells learned through her travels to other countries, that there were sympathetic ears for her outrages against the south. Wells found those listening ears from the women in Britain. Britain had offered emancipated African-Americans freedom long before President Lincoln. The south was losing many African-Americans fleeing from the south to both Britain and Canada. Wells suggested that African-Americans leave Memphis and go elsewhere to live.  

Women in other countries were surprised to learn that Wells did not find support for her causes in fighting against injustices from women in the United States. Wells reported that America's women movement did not include African-American women. Highlighting the hypocrisy within the pious so called women movement -fight for equality for all women, Wells pointed out the non existence of African-American women membership. In fact, the United States women movement was a battle about class among raced white women. A class warfare as to which raced white women could enter the sphere of true womanhood and be classed a "lady". These women would be allowed to enter society or sororities to mate and marry America's patriotic and prominent males.

Wells writings about these contradictions in America angered her opponents and her newspaper was destroyed. Wells had to do what she was advocating for others to do. Wells had to flee to the north for her own safety. Wells continued her crusade against racial injustices by helping organize the NAACP. Her voice would replace her newspaper as she ran for political office. This would provide Wells an opportunity to rally others to the bully pulpit to fight for the legal rights of all African-Americans, including women. 

Wells life journey reminds us of the outrage years later when mild mannered Rosa Parks, a woman, refused to give her seat to a raced white male and remained in her seat.

Follow procedures-Steps to Censorship

Amy Sorrell, a teacher at Woodlan Junior-Senior High School is in the hot seat. Sorrell failed to discourage an opinion piece written by a student. Did Sorrell not read what happened to a young male student at Carroll High School in expressing his views about a friend. This student was kicked out of school for expressing an opinion also for defending a friend but in his own publication that dogged his school.

But student, Megan Chase expressed an opinion in support of a friend with same sex issues. Bad, Bad She wrote this opinion and it was printed in the school student newspaper. For all the other students to be exposed to same sex issues. Hello, can we say Rosie, Ellen, Rock Hudson, just to name a few. It's not like it's the student looking hearing about the issue. Nevertheless, Chase's opinion stirred the Woodlan's Principal into action. The Principal took over the student newspaper. This way, he will have final say on what goes on in the student's newspaper.

It's not like the school is against same sex issues. Sorrell does not understand how it could have come to her losing her job. Krista Stockman reports:

The East Allen County Schools teacher at the center of a controversy over the newspaper at Woodlan Junior-Senior High School has been placed on paid leave.

English and journalism teacher Amy Sorrell was told Monday that she was being placed on leave while the district investigates allegations that could lead to terminating her contract.

She said she doesn’t know what the investigation is about or why she is being placed on leave.

“I’m assuming it’s with this whole mess of all this other stuff, but I really don’t see how it got this far,” Sorrell said.

Sorrell, probably got caught up in groupthink and decided she is an adult and skirted the rule of going through through the proper channels. Had Sorrell followed the correct procedure, the article would not have seen the light of day.. or at best would have been more balance. Balanced in the fact that the articlewould not have leaned so heavily toward supporting same sex relationships. Lesson, students need to follow school rules. And learning about same sex relationship has nothing to do with following man rules.

Sorrell knows the rules, she's a teacher. First and foremost schools are not about what students think. You can gossip all day, but don't have a student thinking. It is a place to teach them how to fit into society. Second rule, do not challenge authority. Who cares if authority, or role model are wrong. Heck the President started a war based on information that was wrong. But the President is authority, just follow the rules.

Sorrell broke the rules, and now her job is on the line. Sorrell took the risk, and now a quick dismissal will teach the students the price of not following the rules. Schools don't care if you eat, sleep, chew gum and even have sex, but for goodness sake, it's not a place to encourage students to think.

Oh by the way, Sorrell is a female. The student who wrote the opinion was a female. The reaction towards these two female is not out of character for a district that allegedly stopped collective bargaining with a group of workers who were mainly females.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) A federal labor board has ruled that an Indiana school district may have discriminated against female employees when it stopped collective bargaining with employee groups made up mostly of women.

East Allen County Schools said in December 2004 that the district would no longer negotiate contracts with nurses, secretaries, paraprofessionals and food service workers. District officials said the decision would save the district money, and noted there was no legal requirement to bargain with the associations, though they had done so for decades.

The four groups had a total of about 310 employees in 2005, but less than five were men. Union officials say the EEOC will work with the school district and the groups to come to an agreement.

East Allen County Schools attorney Tim McCaulay said he would forward the determination to the school board and consult with outside legal counsel about the ruling.

The saying goes, if you discriminate against one you will discriminate against others.

So now what? Hopeful those in the same sex community will stand with Sorrell and the student. Sorrell stood. Sorrell stood for the right to express your view. That students do have opinions and they need to be able to express these views without being censored. Let's see if the same sex community is without bias by standing up in defense of a female.