Ella Baker And The Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision (gender And American Culture)
by Barbara Ransby /
2005 / English / PDF
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One of the most important African American leaders of the twentieth
century and perhaps the most influential woman in the civil rights
movement, Ella Baker (1903-1986) was an activist whose remarkable
career spanned fifty years and touched thousands of lives.
One of the most important African American leaders of the twentieth
century and perhaps the most influential woman in the civil rights
movement, Ella Baker (1903-1986) was an activist whose remarkable
career spanned fifty years and touched thousands of lives.
A gifted grassroots organizer, Baker shunned the spotlight in
favor of vital behind-the-scenes work that helped power the black
freedom struggle. She was a national officer and key figure in
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People,
one of the founders of the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference, and a prime mover in the creation of the Student
Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Baker made a place for herself
in predominantly male political circles that included W. E. B.
DuBois, Thurgood Marshall, and Martin Luther King Jr., all the
while maintaining relationships with a vibrant group of women,
students, and activists both black and white.
A gifted grassroots organizer, Baker shunned the spotlight in
favor of vital behind-the-scenes work that helped power the black
freedom struggle. She was a national officer and key figure in
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People,
one of the founders of the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference, and a prime mover in the creation of the Student
Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Baker made a place for herself
in predominantly male political circles that included W. E. B.
DuBois, Thurgood Marshall, and Martin Luther King Jr., all the
while maintaining relationships with a vibrant group of women,
students, and activists both black and white.
In this deeply researched biography, Barbara Ransby chronicles
Baker's long and rich political career as an organizer, an
intellectual, and a teacher, from her early experiences in
depression-era Harlem to the civil rights movement of the 1950s
and 1960s. Ransby shows Baker to be a complex figure whose
radical, democratic worldview, commitment to empowering the black
poor, and emphasis on group-centered, grassroots leadership set
her apart from most of her political contemporaries. Beyond
documenting an extraordinary life, the book paints a vivid
picture of the African American fight for justice and its
intersections with other progressive struggles worldwide across
the twentieth century.
In this deeply researched biography, Barbara Ransby chronicles
Baker's long and rich political career as an organizer, an
intellectual, and a teacher, from her early experiences in
depression-era Harlem to the civil rights movement of the 1950s
and 1960s. Ransby shows Baker to be a complex figure whose
radical, democratic worldview, commitment to empowering the black
poor, and emphasis on group-centered, grassroots leadership set
her apart from most of her political contemporaries. Beyond
documenting an extraordinary life, the book paints a vivid
picture of the African American fight for justice and its
intersections with other progressive struggles worldwide across
the twentieth century.