What made ida take care of her family?

The family, as well as the rest of the slaves of the Confederate states, were decreed free by the Union, about six months after Ida's birth, thanks to the Emancipation Proclamation. However, living in Mississippi as African Americans, they faced racial prejudices and were restricted by discriminatory rules and practices.
When Ida was sixteen years old both of her parents died from Yellow Fever. In order to keep her family together, Ida went to work as a teacher and took care of her brothers and sisters. A few years later, Ida moved to Memphis to teach where she could make more money. She also took college courses during the summer and began to write and edit for a local journal.
hope it helps