--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [Ella Baker]'s second defining…" description: "\"[Ella Baker]'s second defining characteristic was her dislike of top-down leadership... 'She felt leaders were not appointed but the rose up. Someone w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg" --- # \[Ella Baker\]'s second defining characteristic was her… ![“[Ella Baker]'s second defining characteristic was her dislike of top-down leadership... 'She felt leaders were not appointed but the rose up. Someone will rise. Someone will emerge'. It was an attitude Baker shared with some of the older women in the movement.” quote by Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg) > “\[Ella Baker\]'s second defining characteristic was her dislike of top-down leadership... 'She felt leaders were not appointed but the rose up. Someone will rise. Someone will emerge'. It was an attitude Baker shared with some of the older women in the movement.” [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective leadership emerges organically from the grassroots rather than being imposed from above. **In simple terms:** Leaders rise from the bottom up. Key Takeaway Support bottom‑up leadership. Themes leadership grassroots empowerment Mood analytical inspirational Type political organizational When to use this quote - community organizing - political movements - team building - social activism - organizational change Key Concepts participatory democracy collective action Questions to Reflect On - How can grassroots leaders gain broader influence? - What balance works between top‑down and bottom‑up approaches? A Different Perspective Top‑down structures can provide necessary coordination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Bakers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bakers/) [Characteristic Dislike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characteristic-dislike-4267381/) [Characteristics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characteristics/) [Civil rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-rights/) [Defining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defining/) [Dislike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dislike/) [Dislike Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dislike-leadership-4267378/) [Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ella-baker-230411/) [Ella-baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ella-baker-54320/) [Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt/) [Felt Leaders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt-leaders-4267380/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Leadership Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership-felt-4267379/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Naacp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naacp/) [Older women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-women/) [Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rose/) [Top down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/top-down/) ## Related quotes > [“How did I make a living? I haven't. I have eked out an existence." - Ella Baker”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/how-did-i-make-a-living-i-haven-t-i-have-eked-out-an-existence-ella/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [Give light and people will find the way. --Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/give-light-and-people-will-find-the-way-ella-baker/) [Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/) > [All talks about legacies of white supremacy must be tied to empowering the lives of poor and working people as a whole. The black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/all-talks-about-legacies-of-white-supremacy-must-be-tied-to/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [We look at the legacy of Frederick Douglass and Ida B. Wells and Ella Baker, Malcolm X and Martin King. We have, and part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/we-look-at-the-legacy-of-frederick-douglass-and-ida-b-wells-and-ella/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [“There are heroes and, emphatically, heroines enough in this history. Yielding to the temptation to focus on their courage, however, may miss the point.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-payne/there-are-heroes-and-emphatically-heroines-enough-in-this-history/) [Charles Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-payne/) ## More by Gail Collins > [The Bushes were certainly part of Texas in their mind, but they didn't have the kind of political flavor that you normally find in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/the-bushes-were-certainly-part-of-texas-in-their-mind-but-they-didn-t/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [The work-family divide is the biggest issue for American women. But in some ways it's amazing how adjusted society has become to it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/the-work-family-divide-is-the-biggest-issue-for-american-women-but-in/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [I don't think the folks in the low-tax states really want to go into a fairness discussion. Residents of Connecticut and New York would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/i-don-t-think-the-folks-in-the-low-tax-states-really-want-to-go-into/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [I would walk a thousand miles To feel your hugs and see your smiles But then one day we had to part The hardest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/i-would-walk-a-thousand-miles-to-feel-your-hugs-and-see-your-smiles/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [“One law prohibited blacks from testifying against whites in court, and carefully defined “negro” as anyone who had one nonwhite grandparent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/one-law-prohibited-blacks-from-testifying-against-whites-in-court-and/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [“An estimated 400 women disguised themselves as men to fight in the Civil War. Many were like Amy Clarke, who enlisted so she could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/an-estimated-400-women-disguised-themselves-as-men-to-fight-in-the/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [Billy Jean King could not get credit when her husband was in law school and she was winning the Wimbledon, because he had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/billy-jean-king-could-not-get-credit-when-her-husband-was-in-law/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [Sarah Palin is treated like a bimbo sometimes, but she has never given the public the respect they deserve. She acts silly and doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/sarah-palin-is-treated-like-a-bimbo-sometimes-but-she-has-never-given/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [There's more student debt than credit card debt! Everywhere I go, I run into young people trying to build careers while they keep shelling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/there-s-more-student-debt-than-credit-card-debt-everywhere-i-go-i-run/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [Women in America will have to find an answer for the pressures of work and family, but if you really care about women's issues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/women-in-america-will-have-to-find-an-answer-for-the-pressures-of/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [The idea that 'if you don't like how things are going, you can just leave' is so ingrained in Texas, the secession movement is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/the-idea-that-if-you-don-t-like-how-things-are-going-you-can-just/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [I admired the way McCain worked on campaign finance reform. I admired the way Nancy Pelosi stiffened the Democrats' spine during the health care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/i-admired-the-way-mccain-worked-on-campaign-finance-reform-i-admired/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [Some of our national heroines were defined by the fact that they never nested - they were peripatetic crusaders like Susan B. Anthony, Clara…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/some-of-our-national-heroines-were-defined-by-the-fact-that-they/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [When the women's movement began, it was a middle-class phenomenon. Certainly, black women had other stuff to think about in the '60s besides a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/when-the-women-s-movement-began-it-was-a-middle-class-phenomenon/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [Downplaying their faults is pretty much the point of campaigns. But we do count on them living with the constant terror of public rejection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/downplaying-their-faults-is-pretty-much-the-point-of-campaigns-but-we/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) [Explore all 127 Gail Collins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) ## More Attitude quotes > [“WE CAN'T ALWAYS CONTROL OUR CIRCUMSTANCES BUT WE CAN CONTROL OUR ATTITUDE. WE MUST BE MORE CONCERNED WITH WHAT WE DO WITH WHAT HAPPENS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-j-ashton/we-can-t-always-control-our-circumstances-but-we-can-control-our/) [MARVIN J. ASHTON](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-j-ashton/) > [It's not the method, it's the mindset.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-gilbert/it-s-not-the-method-it-s-the-mindset/) [Andy Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-gilbert/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [Vow to be valiant. Resolve to be radiant. Determine to be dynamic. Strive to be sincere. Aspire to be attuned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-arthur-ward/vow-to-be-valiant-resolve-to-be-radiant-determine-to-be-dynamic/) [William Arthur Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-arthur-ward/) > [Don't judge me because I'm stupid. Don't judge me because I'm, mean. Don't judge me because I'm weird. Don't judge me for mistakes. Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-harden-me/don-t-judge-me-because-i-m-stupid-don-t-judge-me-because-i-m-mean-don/) [Isaiah Harden (Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-harden-me/) > [Your feelings (mood) dictate your thought, your thought determines your attitude (reactions) and your attitude describes your lifestyle, so: be careful how you feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheye-hassan/your-feelings-mood-dictate-your-thought-your-thought-determines-your/) [Sheye Hassan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheye-hassan/) > [Success will come when the societal attitude changes and not a single woman in America asks herself the question 'What did I do?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/success-will-come-when-the-societal-attitude-changes-and-not-a-single/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [“Good Seeds! Gratitude is the Greatest Attitude that has no Substitute.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-kelvin-clive/good-seeds-gratitude-is-the-greatest-attitude-that-has-no-substitute/) [Bernard Kelvin Clive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-kelvin-clive/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [One genuine reason to feel jealous of my parents:-) I will never ever have a kid as awesome as their's...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-genuine-reason-to-feel-jealous-of-my-parents-i-will-never-ever/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm optimistic Hong Kong will achieve universal suffrage - no matter the attitude of Beijing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-wong/i-m-optimistic-hong-kong-will-achieve-universal-suffrage-no-matter/) [Joshua Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-wong/) > [My attitude it that you don't give in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-taylor/my-attitude-it-that-you-don-t-give-in/) [Phil Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-taylor/) > [Transparency pertains to impartial behavior, implies openness, communication, and accountability. Inculcate transparency in attitude and experience a life free of controversy and blame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-anil-kr-sinha/transparency-pertains-to-impartial-behavior-implies-openness/) [Dr Anil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-anil-kr-sinha/) > [And if the mind thinks with a believing attitude one can do amazing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/and-if-the-mind-thinks-with-a-believing-attitude-one-can-do-amazing/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) [Browse all 9,543 Attitude quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "[Ella Baker]'s second defining characteristic was her dislike of top-down leadership... 'She felt leaders were not appointed but the rose up. Someone will rise. Someone will emerge'. It was an attitude Baker shared with some of the older women in the movement.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gail Collins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteristic-was-her-dislike-of-top/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attitude" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteristic-was-her-dislike-of-top/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/gail-collins-3567_attitude_ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteris_2922893.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[Ella Baker]'s second defining characteristic was her dislike of top-down leadership... 'She felt leaders…” — Gail Collins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gail Collins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "[Ella Baker]'s second defining characteristic was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteristic-was-her-dislike-of-top/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/ella-baker-s-second-defining-characteristic-was-her-dislike-of-top/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```