Dorothy
I. Height has a passion for people. And as president of the National Council
of Negro Women (NCNW) since 1957, she has turned her passion and leadership
toward the struggle for equality and human rights for all people.
Ms. Height was born in Richmond,
Virginia, on March 24, 1912, but later moved to Rankin, Pennsylvania, a small
town near Pittsburgh, where she attended public schools. Ms. Height established
herself early as a dedicated student with exceptional oratorical skills. With
a $1,000 scholarship for winning a national oratorical contest sponsored by
the Elks and a record of scholastic excellence, she enrolled in New York University
and earned both bachelor and master's degrees in four years.
"She has turned her
passion toward the struggle for equality and human rights for all people."
Ms. Height has carried out
the dream of her friend and mentor and founder of the NCNW, Mary McLeod Bethune,
to leave no one behind. She has helped to advance women's rights; initiate food
drives, child care and housing projects; and implement career and educational
programs that embody the principles of self-reliance. In the 1960s, Ms. Height
placed the organization on a course of action, sponsoring "Wednesdays in Mississippi,"
days when interracial groups of women would assist at Freedom Schools; and voter
registration and education drives in the north and south.
The former national president
of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority was also a celebrated and active leader in the
Civil Rights Movement and Women's Movement. Her selfless and extraordinary involvement
in advancing women's rights, her dedication to the liberation of blacks, and
her selfless determination were only a few of the reasons why President Bill
Clinton presented Ms. Height with the Presidential Medal of Freedom Award in
August 1994.
As a promoter of positive
black family life, Height conceived and organized the Black Family Reunion Celebration
in 1986 to reinforce the historic strengths and traditional values of the African-American
family. Now in its eleventh year in nine cities, the Celebration has made a
difference in the lives of those fourteen million who have participated. And...
so has Ms. Height during her six decades of public life as dream giver, earth
shaker, and crusader for human rights.
