Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice

Recognized in 2020 with a special Pulitzer Prize, Ida B. Wells-Barnett was a household name in Black America during much of her lifetime (1863-1931) and was considered the equal of her well-known African American contemporaries such as Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois.

Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice documents the dramatic life and turbulent times of the pioneering African American journalist, activist, suffragist and anti-lynching crusader of the post-Reconstruction period. Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison reads selections from Wells' memoirs and other writings in this winner of more than 20 film festival awards.

"One had better die fighting against injustice than die like a dog or a rat in a trap." - Ida B. Wells

Discussion Questions

Well's Original Letters

ABOUT WILLIAM GREAVES

A director, producer, actor and writer, William Greaves' films have won over seventy international film festival awards including an Emmy. He served as executive producer and co-host of the pioneering 1960s network television series Black Journal. His complete filmography reveals that he has been one of the most prolific and eloquent African American voices in the media over the past three decades. For more information visit www.williamgreaves.com.

The Equal Justice Institute has released a groundbreaking new report Lynching in America Confronting the Racial Legacy of Racial Terrorism which documents at least 700 more lynchings of Black people than previously reported.