THE swaying seas of the Atlantic crossing tussled against the ship from America bound for Liverpool in 1893.
On board was the courageous and early African-American civil and human rights leader, Ida B. Wells. Of the journey, Wells recorded in her diary that she had become seasick for several days. She came to port weakened by the passage, but still a beacon of ardent strength – a woman’s formidable voice equipped with a flame to light her path forward into Scotland. There she would tell gripping stories of the horrific treatment African-Americans were facing in America. Her visit awakened the minds of thousands.
Wells had a great mentor and supporter, African-American leader Frederick Douglass whose love and passion for Scotland ran deep. She brought letters of introduction from Douglass to various contacts he had developed in Scotland over decades following his first visit in 1846. In some ways, he had passed the torch of reform to her.
Wells’ first stop was in Aberdeen on April 21, 1893. There she was met by the fervent support of Scottish poet, novelist, suffragist, and social reformer Isabella Fyvie Mayo. Fyvie Mayo's welcoming and enthusiastic spirit of support of Wells immediately set the tone of the historic visit. Wells was impressed with Fyvie Mayo’s home and how she had made it a refuge and asylum for those from East India. Wells had also been grateful for how Fyvie Mayo, and Edinburgh born and suffragist, Catherine Impey, had found ways to sponsor her trip.
The first public remarks Wells made in the UK were in the ballroom of the Aberdeen Music Hall. The speech almost did not happen, and the slot only opened up fortuitously because of Fyvie Mayo’s advocacy. Wells was told before she started her remarks that she could only speak for several minutes. She moved to the podium – glanced out for a moment. The audience stared back not knowing what to expect from the young African American woman born in Bolling Farm in Mississippi. Then the words came, like the notes of clarion trumpets they reverberated through the hall.
Wells’ remarks that day were some of the most compelling words ever heard in the Music Hall. She lost sight of the clock and ended up speaking for 25 minutes to an enraptured audience of Aberdonians. Wells denounced the racism she saw and experienced in America, addressed ballot-box violence, spotlighted human atrocities, and described in graphic detail the barbarous practice of lynching that had spread considerably across the American South.
Following Aberdeen, Wells went on to Huntly, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, delivering equally powerful messages. She also spent time in England. An important piece of the remarks was to encourage the UK as the largest importer of American cotton to stand forthrightly against the disenfranchisement, segregation, and shocking practice of lynching. Many Scots and Britons had erroneously believed that nearly 30 years after the end of the American Civil War that African-Americans were being fully integrated into society. Some progress had occurred, but the dangers and violence were still appalling – suffering was rampant and African-Americans were still unsafe. Wells used her gifts of persuasion to educate and change minds. The reach of her unflinching words stretched well beyond the physical structures she spoke in.
During this Black History Month in the UK, I marvel at the life of Ida Wells and her seminal trip to Scotland 129 years ago. She took this gruelling and selfless journey to stand firm for the voiceless and powerless. The connections she made and minds she changed while in Scotland are without number. Wells spoke out knowing of the personal risk to her, especially when she returned to America. It is people like Wells, Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King, and so many African-Americans who stood tall for human progress in America and internationally as they spoke in cities across the UK.
We are placed in this arc of time. We have a voice to address racism and discrimination, promote acceptance, create opportunities for those who have barriers placed in their path. Ida Wells said she “felt a responsibility to show the world” what African Americans were facing. We, too, have a charge. Wells, who died in 1931, overcame an ocean to change hearts – she was a ship’s captain for change. I imagine she would say to us in our time, “board your vessel, hoist the sails, stick the oars into the water, and depart the dock.” A ship is best used when we take it out to sea, discovering those places that will shape us, rescuing and uplifting those we encounter and who are stranded along the way.
Ian Houston has spent his career in Washington, DC as an advocate for diplomacy, trade, global poverty alleviation, intercultural dialogue. He promotes commercial, educational, and charitable linkages between Scotland and the US through GlobalScot, Scottish Business Network, and as an Honorary Professor at the University of the West of Scotland and honorary Lecturer at the University of Aberdeen. His views are his own.
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