Ella Baker Civil Rights Movement Essay

Black women played a vital role during the Civil Rights Movement, yet they were not fully recognized for their efforts. The struggles Ella Baker and Daisy Bates faced depict some of the internal injustice within the Civil Rights Movement. The general theme for both women is that their ideas and roles were not appreciated due to the fact that they were women. Baker, who risked her life to fight for injustice in the South received little backing from the NAACP, the very same organization demanding for equal rights. Frustrated by the way she was treated as the Director of the NAACP local branches, Baker resigned her position and founded the In Friendship group. Despite her accomplishment as both a civil rights leader and a co-owner of a Black newspaper, Baker’s vision was not shared by the leaders of civil rights. She protected and mentored the Little Rock Nine and provided them with a place to gather in the

Starting from an early age, Bates faced many challenges. Her mother was raped and killed by White men. After her mother’s death, her father gave her up for adoption. After finding out what happened to her mother from her stepfather, she developed a hatred for Whites. Throughout school, Bate faced racial discrimination and was harassed; however, she never backed down and often harassed her oppressors. After joining the Civil Rights Movement, Bates too witnessed discrimination for being a woman. Dr. Martin Luther King resented working with her. In fact, she was often frustrated with his mindset of slow progress. Dr. King grudgingly accepted her role as the “acting” Director of the SCLC. While it may appear that Dr. King had a personal resentment towards Bates, the reality at the time was that men had the mentality that women were subordinate to men. In fact, they used the bible to justify this belief. For many men in the NAACP, the strength of a women threatened their