Dorothy Height has passed

[DaemonSeid]

Here is the link


WASHINGTON – Dorothy Height, who as longtime president of the National Council of Negro Women was the leading female voice of the 1960s civil rights movement, died Tuesday. She was 98.

Height, who continued actively speaking out into her 90s, had been at Howard University Hospital for some time.

As a teenager, Height marched in New York's Times Square shouting, "Stop the lynching." In the 1950s and 1960s, she was the leading woman helping the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and other leading activists orchestrate the civil rights movement.

The late activist C. DeLores Tucker once called Height an icon to all African-American women.

"I call Rosa Parks the mother of the civil rights movement," Tucker said in 1997. "Dorothy Height is the queen."

Height was on the platform at the Lincoln Memorial, sitting only a few feet from King when he gave his famous "I have a dream" speech at the March on Washington in 1963.

"He spoke longer than he was supposed to speak," Height recalled in a 1997 Associated Press interview. But after he was done, it was clear King's speech would echo for generations, she said, "because it gripped everybody."

Height became president of the National Council of Negro Women in 1957 and held the post until 1997, when she was 85. She remained chairman of the group.

"I hope not to work this hard all the rest of my life," she said at the time. "But whether it is the council, whether it is somewhere else, for the rest of my life, I will be working for equality, for justice, to eliminate racism, to build a better life for our families and our children."

Height received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 from President Bill Clinton.

To celebrate Height's 90th birthday in March 2002, friends and supporters raised $5 million to enable her organization to pay off the mortgage on its Washington headquarters. The donors included Oprah Winfrey and Don King.

[DrPhil]

Rest in peace to such an influential and prolific Soror.

[ladygreek]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

Rest in peace to such an influential and prolific Soror.

In loving memory of our iconic soror.

[AGDAlum]

In "We Are Our Mothers' Daughters," Cokie Roberts includes a chapter about Dorothy Height. Her story is remarkable. Her legacy is courage, persistence, leadership, and inspiration.

[Little32]

My sympathies for your loss.

[Dreadloc'd Diva]

This is a very sad day. May God bless her to eternal life.

[knight_shadow]

RIP

[GTAlphaPhi]

Jezebel has a nice article and video clip from NBC's archives. It also mentions other civil rights leaders who have passed away recently -- Benjamin Hooks, Dr. Claude Wyatt, Richard Kelly, and Katie McWatt.

My condolences to Ms. Height's family, friends, and the sisters of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

[AOII Angel]

What an amazing life! She had such a strong character to do all of the things she did in her life. Can you imagine how much we could accomplish if we all had the same initiative as she did? My condolences on your loss, but more importantly my congratulations on your association with such an important historical figure.

[ladygreek]

Originally Posted by GTAlphaPhi

Jezebel has a nice article and video clip from NBC's archives. It also mentions other civil rights leaders who have passed away recently -- Benjamin Hooks, Dr. Claude Wyatt, Richard Kelly, and Katie McWatt.

My condolences to Ms. Height's family, friends, and the sisters of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Thank you for mentioing Katie McWatt, a Twin Cities Treasure. I am so fortunate to have had personal interactions with both she and my soror Dorothy Height.

[DrPhil]

Our official press release can be found under "News & Events" on the right side of the home page.

(http://www.deltasigmatheta.org/)

[1stSoon2BePhD]

I hope this is in no way disrespectful...

To the members of Delta Sigma Theta, please accept my condolences in the loss of your outstanding member. When I heard about the passing of Dr. Height, I was immediately reminded of a play which I wrote for my younger sisters Girl Scout troop. This play was inspired by the Legends Luncheon which Oprah Winfrey had in order to honor the African-American women whom she viewed as trailblazers and icons.

For my version of the Legends Luncheon, each of the girls was assigned the role of an influential African-American female and my little sister (who is, by the way, autistic) played the role of Dr. Dorothy Height.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5Sb5OgZ3KE

I apologize for the camera - my aunt was filming this on my moms digital camera and it was apparent that she was not completely comfortable with the zoom feature but otherwise she did a good job. My sister as Dorothy Height comes in at about 04:10 if you wish to skip, but all of the girls did a beautiful job with their parts. I hope you all don't mind my sharing.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by 1stSoon2BePhD

I hope this is in no way disrespectful...

To the members of Delta Sigma Theta, please accept my condolences in the loss of your outstanding member. When I heard about the passing of Dr. Height, I was immediately reminded of a play which I wrote for my younger sisters Girl Scout troop. This play was inspired by the Legends Luncheon which Oprah Winfrey had in order to honor the African-American women whom she viewed as trailblazers and icons.

For my version of the Legends Luncheon, each of the girls was assigned the role of an influential African-American female and my little sister (who is, by the way, autistic) played the role of Dr. Dorothy Height.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5Sb5OgZ3KE

I apologize for the camera - my aunt was filming this on my moms digital camera and it was apparent that she was not completely comfortable with the zoom feature but otherwise she did a good job. My sister as Dorothy Height comes in at about 04:10 if you wish to skip, but all of the girls did a beautiful job with their parts. I hope you all don't mind my sharing.

I don't find it disrespectful. Thanks for sharing this!

[NinjaPoodle]

Originally Posted by 1stSoon2BePhD

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5Sb5OgZ3KE

That was sweet.

Truly, a great loss to the community. My sincerest condolences and deepest respects to Dr. Height's family, friends, Sorors and community at large.

[NiaX]

many prayers to Soror Height's family