Duster came of age during the 1970s in Chicago hearing stories about her great-grandmother, who was born into slavery in 1862 and at age 16 lost both parents to yellow fever, but survived to become a pioneering African-American journalist, suffragist, and an advocate for civil rights. Wells, who died in 1931, became known around the world for her courageous investigative reporting of attacks on Black people and her campaign to expose and abolish lynching. Last year, the Pulitzer committee awarded Wells a special citation for her work.
In her book, "Ida B. The Queen:The Extraordinary Life and Legacy of Ida B. Wells," Duster writes of her own struggles as a young person to find a place in the world. Duster realized that new generations needed to learn Wells' story, and that as a descendant and a writer she was uniquely positioned to be the “keeper of the flame.”
Duster is a writer, speaker, professor, and champion of racial and gender equity, who has written, edited, or contributed to eleven books.