Dorothy Height Accomplishments

Dorothy Height

Dorothy Height was born on March 24, 1912, in Richmond, Virginia. She grew up with a mother (Fannie Burroughs Height), a father (James Edward Height), and a sister (Anthanette Aldridge). Her father was a building contractor while her mother was a nurse both working to support the family. When Dorothy was 5 years old she moved to Rankin, Pennsylvania.

She went to Rankin High School located in Pennsylvania. During high school, Height started becoming more socially and politically active by showing her talents as a public speaker. Height’s speaking skills helped her out tremendously and brought her to a national oratory competition. After she won the competition she was awarded a scholarship to college provided by the elks.

Height was accepted into Barnard College in New York but as the start of the school year approached they changed their mind about her acceptance. She was told that they had already met their quota for black students since they

already accepted their limit of two. This is when Height started her journey to becoming a civil rights activist without realizing it. Still determined, Height applied to New York University earning a bachelor’s degree in education in 1930 and a master’s degree in psychology in 1932. After college, she continued her educational journey by doing postgraduate work at Columbia University and the New York School of Social Work.

Height first started working as a caseworker with the New York City Welfare Department. At the age of 25, she began her career as a civil rights activist and joined the National Council of Negro Woman. This council allowed her to fight for the rights of both African Americans and women. In 1944, she joined the staff of YWCA. After working at the YWCA for not very long, Height encountered a monumental moment in her life. Height was able to meet Mary McLeod Bethune who was the educator and founder of the National Council of Negro Women. She met her and U.S. first lady at the time Eleanor Roosevelt when they both came to visit her work facility. Mary McLeod Bethune inspired Height to continue working for what she believed in. Soon after the visit, Height started volunteering with the National Council of Negro Women so she could become close with Mary McLeod Bethune. During all of this jobs, Height was an active member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority so she could improve leadership skills. She was recognized as the national president of the sorority from 1947 to 1956.

During Heights activist career she had many major accomplishments.

One of her first major stepping stones would be directing the integration at the YWCA in 1946. Also, she initiated its Center for Racial Justice in 1965 which she ran until 1977. While she was working for the Center for Racial Justice she was also the president of the National Council of Negro Women. Due to all of these commitments and volunteer opportunities Height was able to become one of the leading figures during the Civil Rights Movement. Since she was intertwined with all of these movements she was able to work with people such as Martin Luther King Jr., A Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young, John Lewis, and James Farmer. All of these people including Dorothy Height inspired many other African American citizens to start standing up for what they believed in. When these figures came together to protest or give a speech they would be known as the “Big Six” as they were the ones who brought civil rights to everyone’s

attention.

In 1963, Height was one of the organizers of the now famous March on Washington. She was one of the many people standing close to Martin Luther King Jr. while he gave his popular “I Have a Dream” speech. Even though Height had amazing skills as a speaker she was not asked to give a speech at the march.

Later on, Height wrote about her experience at the March on Washington and how it was astonishing to see all these different types of people come together to fight for what they believed was right. Many males that shared the march with her said: “We were happy to include women in the human family, but there was no question as to who headed the household”, according to Los Angeles Times. She decided to increase her focus on women rights instead of just African American rights. In 1971, she helped found the National Women’s Political Caucus with Gloria Steinem, Betty Friedan, and Shirley Chisholm.

Height ended up retiring from the YWCA in 1977 but Height continued to run the NCNW for twenty more years. She then focused on strengthening the African-American family and made sure a lot of her upcoming projects had to do with bringing the African-American family closer together. In 1986, Height organized the Black Family Reunion which was a celebration of traditions and it is still celebrated to this day.

Height contributed all of her life to become a civil rights activist. She was awarded many honors and medals due to the hours and years she put into this career. In 1994, President Bill Clinton awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Soon before receiving this medal she stepped down from the presidential position of the NCNW in the late 1990s but continued to remain the organization’s chair of the board until her death in 2010. In 2002, Height decided to turn her 90th birthday into a fundraiser for the NCNW which showed how much she was committed. Many celebrities we know contributed to this event such as Oprah Winfrey and Don King. In 2004, she was also awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President George W. Bush. She later became close friends with Barack and Michelle Obama. Barack Obama named Height as the “Godmother of the Civil Rights Movement.”

Sadly Height passed away on April 20, 2010. Many mourned the passing of this activist for equality and justice for all races. Hillary Clinton was one of the many who attended her funeral and said “Height understood that women’s rights and civil rights are indivisible. She stood up for the rights of women every chance she had.” On February 1, 2017, the United States Postal Service started Black History month by giving Dorothy Height a forever stamp to honor her civil rights legacy.

Overall, Dorothy Height was an amazing woman who used every ounce of publicity to state what she was thinking. Along her journey, she had many bumps but didn’t let any of this stop her. She used these setbacks to encourage her and make her work even harder for what they believed on. All in all, she met many great people along the way and was able to have a huge impact on the way society is today.