How Did Ella Baker Influence The Civil Rights Movement

Before the Civil Rights movement, discrimination was normally ignored, excuses provided, people silenced. Ella Baker went against the norm. Ever since Ella Baker was young, she knew she wanted to make a difference in society. As an African American, life was hard because they were not accepted in society as anything more than slaves, if it were to be exaggerated. Thankfully, Baker never had to endure the hardships of slavery. An improvement was made when slavery was abolished in 1865, but to Baker and many other followers, they still found whites disagreeing with the changes and found them treating blacks poorly. Baker, along with fellow activists, had a goal to change all of mistreatment, and she did. The Civil Rights movement spanned from the late 40’s to the late 60’s. Within those years, many leaders arose, bringing new passion to create equality amongst all people. While many leaders arose, many groups were established. Groups like CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) which was established in ‘42, SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) in ‘60, and the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) a early developed organization. Baker took part in all of these organizations.

She received an education at an all black school as a child and graduated college at Shaw University as class valedictorian. She was always disagreeing and questioning why African Americans weren't treated equally. Growing up with a grandmother who informed her about her life as a slave, Baker knew at a young age that blacks weren’t being treated equally. She could also see the inequality occurring in her community. When Baker was six years old, she slapped a white boy for calling her a racial slur. She became upset with the mistreatment, and knew she wanted to lead the movement in creating opportunities for blacks, the same opportunities whites