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Quote by Ella Baker

“I think the reasons for not selecting persons like the Reverend Borders and John Wesley Dobbs were, in my book rather obvious reasons: because they were people who were basically oriented in the direction of the established method of not confronting the power structure, but trying to elicit concessions by various and sundry means of, well, let's call it accommodating leadership.”

Quote by Ella Baker

Author

Ella Baker (December 13, 1903 – December 13, 1986) was a prominent African American civil rights activist known for her grassroots organizing and mentorship of young leaders. Born in Norfolk, Virginia, and raised in North Carolina, she was influenced by her grandmother's experience as a slave. Baker joined the NAACP in the 1930s, serving as a field secretary and branch director, expanding its membership across the South. She later worked with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and helped found the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), emphasizing collective action over charismatic leadership. Baker advocated for 'group-centered leadership,' empowering ordinary people and youth. Her work shaped the strategy and structure of the civil rights movement, though she often remained in the background. She died on December 13, 1986, at age 83. more

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“We cannot change anything until we accept it. Condemnation does not liberate, it oppresses.”

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“[Martin Luther] King was one of the two young ministers - and you know how directly oriented the Negro community still is towards the minister as the leader.”

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“The anniversary of the Montgomery boycott was being celebrated, and the handbill that was out, and all whatever literature that was circulated, didn't say practically anything about movement or what the movement stood for, what it had done, or anything, but was simply adulation of the leader, you know, [Martin Luther] King.”

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“Martin [Luther King] wasn't one to buck forces too much.”

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