Reviews

Crusade for Justice: The Autobiography of Ida B. Wells, Second Edition by Ida B. Wells-Barnett

susannadkm's review against another edition

4.0

What a woman.

5+ stars for the bravery, boldness, and breadth of Ida B Wells’ life. 4 stars over all since the book is not the most readable and could be more engaging. I thought it was really interesting how she wrote in minute details about her advocacy and laid bare the various disagreements she had with allies. However, I wouldn’t recommend this book to most people, a tighter biography would be better.

I knew of Ida B as a campaigner against lynching, but she did so much more, opening a YMCA-like center for Black men in Chicago since the YMCA would turn them away.

I think my favorite part was her visit with Frederick Douglass and his second wife, and all her interactions with celebrities of the day, in general.

I listened to the audiobook.

ewynn610's review against another edition

1

indukisreading's review

challenging dark informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.0

grllopez's review against another edition

4.0

Another amazing woman who fought tirelessly for justice.

My review: https://www.greatbookstudy.com/2020/07/crusade-for-justice-autobiography-of.html

stuff4bd's review against another edition

5.0

I wished this book contained more personal information but that is not the story Ida B. Wells wanted to tell.

amandabp's review against another edition

4.0

Ida B. Wells is seriously the most incredible person I've ever learned about -- brave, witty, and tirelessly devoted to justice. It's frustrating how many of her experiences and insights still ring true today.

ashwise360's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

staci_taylor's review against another edition

4.0

The title definitely does this book justice! In her last years, Wells wrote this autobiography which I feel many historians should read. It's sad that she is not as well known of an African American hero because she is a woman, but she is just as courageous as Fredrick Douglas and Du Bois. After her parents both died within 24 hours of each other from the 1878 yellow fever epidemic, Wells was the oldest of 6 and had to take care of her younger siblings. She became a teacher and was continuously involved in writing for African American journals and newspapers. She investigated the psychological reasoning behind why whites would accuse black men of raping white women. Lynching, Wells stated, was just an excuse to get rid of blacks competing economically with whites and to terrorize future competitors and all blacks, ultimately treating them as second class citizens. Wells went to England to help advocate against lynching and while in London she formed the anti-lynching community which was the first in the world! In England, the people did not know of the harsh treatments African Americans were receiving in the US so Wells informed them. Of course the US denied having supported any sort of lynching because England was huge importer of cotton which made them indispensable economically if they decided to boycott US cotton due to lynchings. With this anti-lynching community, there was a declining result of lynchings and mob violence and even a two decade span of none being reported. Wells also helped 12 Africans Americans be released from prison and the death sentence after the 1919 Elaine, Arkansas Race Riot where over 100 blacks were murdered by whites for holding a meeting to obtain better payments for their cotton crops as sharecroppers with the white plantation owners. Instead of arresting the white men, the police arrested the blacks and 79 were charged for crimes, tried, and convicted! Wells used the power of the media and wrote pamphlets in protest for these 12 men and the NAACP and Walter White helped form legal defenses to overturn the Elaine convictions. Wells did a lot for African Americans to have some sort of justice in a time of Jim Crow laws and dangerous mob violence in the US. She should be remembered as a crucial black woman that helped in the racially uplift movement along side Du Bois.

nataliecherne's review against another edition

5.0

I felt privileged to read this book. Ida B. Wells crusaded for justice and did not let time nor racism stop her. She paved the way for the civil rights movement as we know it. She is one of the founding member of social justice work. She stood up for her convictions. I wish her story was more widely known. Read this gem.

jackholloway's review against another edition

5.0

One of the most incredible people I've ever read about