To Keep the Waters Troubled: The Life of Ida B. Wells

by Linda O. McMurry

In the generation that followed Frederick Douglass, no African American was more prominent, or more outspoken, than Ida B. Wells. Seriously considered as a rival to W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington for race leadership, Wells' career began amidst controversy when she sued a Tennessee railroad company for ousting her from a first class car, a legal battle which launched her lifelong commitment to journalism and activism. In the 1890s, Wells focused her eloquence on the horrors of lynching, exposing it as a widespread form of racial terrorism. Backing strong words with strong actions, she lectured in the States and abroad, arranged legal representation for black prisoners, hired investigators, founded anti-lynching leagues, sought recourse from Congress, and more. Wells was an equally forceful advocate for women's rights, but parted ways with feminist allies who would subordinate racial justice to their cause. Using diary entries, letters, and published writings, McMurry illuminates Wells's fiery personality, and the uncompromising approach that sometimes lost her friendships even as it won great victories. To Keep the Waters Troubled is an unforgettable account of a remarkable woman and the and the times she helped to change.

Genres: Biography, History, African American, Nonfiction, Journalism, American History, Feminism

416 pages, Hardcover

First published January 14, 1999

About the author

Linda O. McMurry is a Professor of History at North Carolina State University, and author of George Washington Carver: Scientist and Symbol and Recorder of the Black Experience: A Biography of Monroe Nathan Work. She lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Reviews

[Fips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally bought this after hearing an episode on Great Lives, and then reminded about it after catching the episode on Crash Course’s Black American History. Pretty detailed examination of her life, sometimes a bit difficult to read because of the number of different organisations and acronyms that she founded/belonged to, and I feel the biography suffers from jumping backwards and forwards too often. Nevertheless, you’ll probably be able to glean plenty from this book if you’re already familiar with the era and the book’s fascinatingly uncompromising subject.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

A biography of Ida B. Wells, and one of the most interesting books I read this term. She started the anti-lynching campaign in America, and was incredibly influential in the early equal rights movement. I would definitely recommend this to everyone as it is not as scholarly as other books on this list, and is a quick read, too.

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good. There are the common issues with this type of work, where in trying to be balanced and fair it feels like it is waffling, but the research is pretty good, context is usually set up well, and most of all I love Wells.