Daisy Bates was practically born into being a social justice activist. At the age of 3, her mother was killed by 3 men and it left an impact on her. Due to the unfortunate event, she made her life purpose to ending racial injustice.

In 1942, Bates and her husband started the Arkansas State Press, a weekly newspaper—and one of the few ever—dedicated to the Civil Rights Movement. She devoted time at the paper as an editor as well as a writer.

That’s not all Bates did for the Civil Rights Movement; it was a natural extension that she was involved in many civil rights organizations. Her work as President of the Arkansas chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People made her well-known in the community.

She also took charge in enrolling Black children in historically white schools after the Supreme Court ruling that segregation in schools was unconstitutional. She helped organize the first group of Black children desegregating a school, the Little Rock 9,  driving them to school everyday and ensuring they were safe from violent crowds.

She took her organizing skills from the schoolhouse, to the larger community as integration began to take hold.

No one can argue that Bates was a doer. She made sure things were followed through correctly and always looked out for her community. In the current political climate, Bates reminds us that things don’t change immediately, and we have to do all in our power to make sure things are done right.