Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin American publisher, journalist, suffragist, and African-American civil rights activist Date of Birth: 31.08.1842 Country: USA

1. Early Life and Education
2. Marriage and Family Life
3. Contributions to the Civil Rights Movement
4. Founding and Editing the Women's Era
5. The Women's Era Club and the "Ruffin Incident"
6. Continued Activism and Legacy

Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin: A Trailblazing Suffragist, Publisher, and Civil Rights Activist

Early Life and Education

Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on August 31, 1842, to a French-African father from Martinique and an English mother from Cornwall. Her father established the Boston Zion Church and was a successful clothing merchant.

Ruffin attended private and public schools in Charleston, Salem, and New York City, as her parents refused to send her to segregated Boston schools. She graduated from the Bowdoin School after Boston abolished segregated schools.

Marriage and Family Life

In 1858, at the age of 16, Ruffin married George Lewis Ruffin, the first African American graduate of Harvard Law School. They had five children together, including Hubert, a lawyer; Florida Ridley, an educator and co-founder of the Women's Era; Stanley, an inventor; George, a musician; and Robert, who died in infancy.

Contributions to the Civil Rights Movement

The Ruffins were active in the anti-slavery movement and during the Civil War helped recruit Black soldiers for the 54th and 55th Massachusetts Regiments. Josephine also served with the Sanitary Commission.

Ruffin passionately supported women's suffrage, co-founding the American Woman Suffrage Association in 1869 with Julia Ward Howe and Lucy Stone.

Founding and Editing the Women's Era

After her husband's death in 1884, Ruffin used her inheritance and organizing skills to launch the Women's Era, the first newspaper published by and for African American women. The paper advocated for increased rights for women and the advancement of the entire racial group, fostering interracial cooperation.

In 1895, Ruffin organized the National Federation of Afro-American Women, bringing together women from 10 states. The following year, the NAAW merged with the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs, with Mary Church Terrell as president and Ruffin as a vice president.

The Women's Era Club and the "Ruffin Incident"

In 1894, Ruffin founded the Women's Era Club, a social and activist group supported by her daughter, Florida Ridley, and Maria Baldwin. From 1890 to 1897, Ruffin served as editor and publisher of the Women's Era.

In 1900, when the General Federation of Women's Clubs planned a national convention in Milwaukee, Ruffin registered as a delegate from three organizations: the WEC, the New England Women's Club, and the New England Women's Press Club. However, upon discovering that the WEC was comprised solely of Black women, the GFWC executive committee reneged, allowing Ruffin to represent only the two white-majority clubs. Ruffin refused on principle and was denied admission.

This "Ruffin Incident" sparked national outrage, with newspapers overwhelmingly supporting Ruffin's stance. The WEC disbanded in 1903, but Ruffin continued her fight for equality.

Continued Activism and Legacy

In 1910, Ruffin helped establish the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). She became one of the NAACP's charter members and, with other former WEC members, co-founded the League of Women for Community Service, which remains active today.

Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin died in Boston on March 13, 1924, at the age of 82. Her legacy as a pioneering suffragist, publisher, and civil rights activist continues to inspire generations of activists.