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The Life And Work Of Ida B. Wells
The mural, titled "Our Story: Portraits of Change," of civil rights and journalism icon Ida B. Wells was designed by artist Helen Marshall and is displayed at Union Station in Washington, D.C.
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Ida B. Wells was a pioneering Black journalist. While she’s been remembered as a dedicated reporter and fierce advocate for change in the United States, a new generation of activists and journalists have also embraced her story. In 2020, Ida B. Wells-Barnett was awarded a posthumous Pulitzer Prize.
Find a copy of Southern Horrors, by Ida B. Wells-Barnett here.
Her contributions touched nearly every facet of American life: from investigative journalism to education, to entrepreneurship to civil rights.
Now, her great-grandaughter, author and educator Michelle Duster, has published a biography about her great-grandmother’s life and accomplishments.
What does Ida B. Wells-Barnett’s legacy mean to the nation? And what does it mean for Duster? We talk to her and journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones about those questions and more.
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Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
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