Ida B. Wells was an African American journalist, newspaper editor, suffragist, sociologist, and an early leader in the Civil Rights Movement. Born into slavery in Mississippi in 1862, she went on to become a powerful voice against racism and injustice, particularly in the South.
Wells is best known for her investigative journalism and her work exposing the horrors of lynching in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She wrote articles and gave speeches detailing the extent of the problem and the ways in which it was often used as a tool of intimidation and oppression against African Americans. Through her activism, Wells played a major role in shaping the modern civil rights movement and continues to be remembered today as a hero of African American history.