Ella Baker Showed Us the Way to Promote Human Rights

The civil rights icon used wisdom and determination to move the freedom movement and make a difference in America.

Ella Baker Showed Us the Way to Promote Human Rights

Ella Baker speaking at a news conference in 1968 — Ella Baker is a hero of the civil rights freedom movement.

May is national community action month in the United States. It was established by the Community Action Partnership to strengthen the role of Community Action Agencies in assisting low-income families to achieve economic stability.

Community Action Partnership is a national 501(c)3 nonprofit membership organization that provides technical assistance, training, and other resources to Community Action Agencies, nonprofit and public groups funded by the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG), a federal program that allocates funding to states to connect Americans to greater opportunity.

How Do We Give Every Family an Opportunity for Success?

John F. Kennedy with Martin Luther King Jr. and other Black civil rights leaders in 1963 — President John F. Kennedy met with leaders of the March on Washington at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 28, 1963. After the march, they discussed civil rights legislation inching through Congress. The leaders pressed Kennedy to strengthen the legislation. The president listed obstacles. Some believe Kennedy preferred to wait until after the 1964 election to push the issue. Yet in his public speeches, he spoke more about justice for all. From second left are Whitney Young, National Urban League; Dr. Martin Luther King, Christian Leadership Conference; John Lewis, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, partially obscured; Rabbi Joachim Prinz, American Jewish Congress; Dr. Eugene P. Donnaly, National Council of Churches; A. Philip Randolph, AFL-CIO vice president; Kennedy; Walter Reuther, United Auto Workers; Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, partially obscured, and Roy Wilkins, NAACP.

Community Action was born out of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty and from the advocacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 created the Community Action Network of national and locally focused organizations that connect millions of children and families to greater opportunity.

The nation’s Community Action Agencies embody our nation's spirit of hope to change people’s lives for the better and strengthen communities. When national, state and local leaders tap into these agencies’ experience, they can promote workable solutions that connect more families to opportunity — and make America a better place to live for everyone.

America was built on the promise that every family should have an opportunity for success. Yet today’s uneven economy has put a good quality of life out of reach for too many Americans. Some people are working to change that. These people take community action every day to help solve the biggest issues facing our communities.

'Do What Has to Be Done When It Has to Be Done'

Ella Baker speaking in 1964 — Ella Baker inspired and guided many community leaders.

In honor of community action month, we celebrate Ella Baker and recognize the people who take community action every day to help people gain self-sufficiency and transform our communities. Baker was the backbone of the civil rights movement and one of the foremost human rights advocates in U.S. history.

She served in the NAACP, helped create Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and much more. She believed in grassroots leadership and empowering individuals, families, and communities to succeed.

"Give light, and people will find the way," Ella Baker said.

In 1974, Baker delivered a powerful message at the Puerto Rico Solidarity Rally that remains more relevant than ever.

"Friends, brothers and sisters in the struggle for human dignity and freedom. I am here to represent the struggle that has gone on for 300 or more years. A struggle to be recognized as citizens in a country in which we were born. I have had 40 or 50 years of struggle. Ever since a little boy on the streets of Norfolk called me a n----r. I struck him back. And then I had to learn that hitting back with my fists one individual was not enough. It takes organization. It takes dedication. It takes the willingness to stand by and do what has to be done when it has to be done."