Ida B. Wells,

Ida B Wells,

First I would like to say how amazed I am at your work and the impact you had. Many parts of this reading tugged at my heart. I cannot imagine living in a time that was so filled with hate and irrationality, that white men competing in a game of masculinity controlled the justice system and as a result hundreds of lives were brutally taken. The irony of the situation is too much. To think that first, these men were “protecting their women” yet you state it is said many of these men were fathers of mixed children; not only were they hypocrites, but there was also no justice for the pain they caused many african american women by sexually assaulting them. I wonder how they dealt with the fact that they were indeed the soulless savages that they accused the african american men of being?

White men used “human nature” and alcohol as an excuse to become murderers and rapists. This reminds me too much of present day when I’ve heard the excuse “boys will be boys” or “he was drunk and not in the right state of mind” accompanied by blaming the victim. There is still this sense of superiority, that men cannot control their passions and women just heighten them so they cannot be held accountable. I applaud you for fighting this, as it something everyone should fight, but not everyone does.