THE FIRST STEP IN NATION

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The First Step in Nation

Packed in Mt . Zion A . M . E . Church , a number of black women had gathered to hear Mary Church Terrell talk about `the modern women . Oblivious of the heat and the perspiration which thoroughly soaked their dresses , the women were eager to hear what Mary Church Terrell as an educator and first president of the National Association of Coloured women had to say . The women were not disappointed , as

Terrell looked like the `modern woman ' she was telling about . Her graceful walk and speaking captivated the crowd . She talked about educating less fortunate black women organizing themselves and improving their communities

The representatives of different clubs had joined hands to organize the National Association of Coloured women in to put forward a formal protest against an insulting letter written by the white president of the Missouri Press Association , James Jacks . Terrell went on to talk about Harriet Tubman , Sojourner Truth , and other women who had worked for the race , making such a permanent impression on the women , that they were ready to follow the footsteps of their ancestors

One of the women who heard this speech was Fields , a teacher already active in community work . She was a member of Charleston City Federation of women 's club , which specialized in homemaking , helping the disadvantaged , raising funds to help wayward black girls and improving the conditions . She also helped to set up the Priscilla club which served the impoverished black areas , building homes , setting up a United Service Organization for black soldiers during the World War I and later on urging the city officials to hire black teachers . All over the country , black women were helping to shape , mold and direct the thought of their race , in time for an organized female resistance movement . The members of the National Association of Coloured women (NACW ) set to solving interlocking problems involving race , gender and poverty According to them , the problems of a race could be solved by solving the problems of its women

A story reported sixteen years before Terrell 's speech explains why that period in African- American history is known as Nadir . According to it a 12- year old black boy narrowly escaped from being lynched by a mob of white boys , all of them in their early teenage years . As an editor of Richmond Planet , a black weekly , `lynching was demoralizing to young and old equally and the children did what they saw the adults doing

The time from 1880 to 1930 was the most savage and demoralizing time for the black people . Lynching was a common practice and was often performed as a ritual . African- American 's loss of civil values was just one of the manifestations of the white lawlessness . Blacks were separated from whites in public , schools and related things . Black people dealt with the racism by forming their own institutions and retreated...