Following the Color Line by Ray Stannard Baker

The Author

Ray Stannard Baker, a muckraking journalist, was born in 1870 in the town of Lansing, Michigan. His first job as a writer came in Chicago. He wrote for the Chicago News-Record. In one of his articles, Baker talked about a strike at a local restaurant, which later granted him a promotion. In 1897, Ray was hired by a magazine to which he was introduced to critical investigative reporting (muckraking). Ray Stannard Baker wrote twelve books under the name of David Grayson by the end of 1945.

The Writing/The Problem

He earned most of his recognition from his articles on liberal reform. Ray Baker also became the official biographer of Woodrow Wilson. One of the pieces that he wrote an informational book called “Following the Color Line,” written in 1908. This book released stories about the abuse that African Americans suffered in the time of the early 1900’s. Baker talks mainly about the problems of lynching and their racial comparisons. One of the statistics that is mentioned in the Digital History article is that of all of the lynching’s that went on, about 1,678 people were African American and 801 were white men.

The Action

After his books were published, Ray Baker raised awareness about the treatment of people back then. He raised concern for the social responsibility of all life. The knowledge of the issue spread throughout most of the country with the help of his friend Woodrow Wilson. Ray Baker worked closely with him and tried to show him the problems that were happening.

Works Cited

"Ray Stannard Baker, American Magazine, Following the Color Line (1908)." Digital History. 6 Dec. 2009. Web. 3 Dec. 2009. .

"Ray Stannard Baker Biography." Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2006. Web. 2 Dec. 2009. .

"Ray Stannard Baker Papers, 1887-1944 (bulk 1909-1919): Inventory." Princeton University Library Digital Collections: Home. Web. 06 Dec. 2009. .