It was just a normal day when Ida B. Wells boarded a train in September 1883. In an event that would go down in history, she was ordered to change railroad cars due to the color of her skin. The Civil Rights Act of 1875 was in full force at the time. It declared that African Americans were not to be separated from whites in public places such as railroad cars and hotels. Wells refused to move, so the conductor and two white passengers picked her up to move her. Wells left the train and sued the railroad. This event started what would become her passion. Wells never stopped writing about, talking about, or organizing people for the fair treatment of African Americans and women in America. Her actions have inspired thousands to work for civil rights and to improve race and gender relations everywhere.