Ella Baker Essay

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Ella Josephine Baker Ella Jo Baker, an unsung hero of the civil war. Ella Josephine Baker born December 13, 1903 in Norfolk, Virginia. Baker attended Shaw University where she challenged many of the universities policies that she thought were unfair and became her class Valedictorian in 1927. Ms. Baker was an African American who was part of the civil rights and human rights movements. She began her role as an activist in 1930 with the Young Negros Cooperative League which she helped form. Ms. Bakers career lived and thrived through over fifty years. Ella Baker played more of a behind the scenes role during all the movements. She mentored many emerging activists such as Rosa Parks, Diane Nash, and Bob Moses. She also worked alongside some of the most famous civil rights leaders such as W. E. B. Du Bois, Thurgood Marshall, and Martin Luther King Jr. Ella began her role as secretary with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) but eventually became director of branches for three years. Her involvement with social movements was impacted by the stories her grandmother would tell her. Her grandmother was a slave that was kept captive and refused to marry a man that her master chose for her and because she refused she got whipped. Ella’s grandmother’s resistance sparked an interest in her. As mentioned before Ella Baker was an active member, organizer, and director of many organizations such as NAACP, Young Negros Cooperative League, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Ella Jo Baker was a very active member of all the organizations she took part in. When she was named director of branches for the NAACP she was the highest-ranking woman in the organization. She was highly respected for the determinations she showed. Baker pushed the boundaries of the organization by proposing ideas

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