John F. Kennedy
Famous Military Veterans
Marilyn Monroe
Anthony Weiner
My Ghost Story
I Survived
Babe Ruth
Johnny Cash
Georgia O'Keefe
I Survived
Quick Facts
- NAME: Dorothy Height
- OCCUPATION: Civil Rights Activist, Women's Rights Activist
- BIRTH DATE: March 24, 1912
- DEATH DATE: April 20, 2010
- EDUCATION: New York University
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Richmond, Virginia
- PLACE OF DEATH: Washington, D.C.
- Full Name: Dorothy Irene Height
- AKA: Dorothy Height
Best Known For
Dorothy Height was a civil rights and women's rights activist focused primarily on improving the circumstances of and opportunities for African-American women.
Quiz
Think you know about Biography?
Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.
Play NowDorothy Height. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 10:27, May 25, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743.
Dorothy Height. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743 [Accessed 25 May 2013].
"Dorothy Height." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 25 2013, 10:27 http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743.
"Dorothy Height," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743 [accessed May 25, 2013].
"Dorothy Height," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743 (accessed May 25, 2013).
Dorothy Height [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 25] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743.
Dorothy Height, http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743 (last visited May 25, 2013).
Dorothy Height. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-height-40743. Accessed May 25, 2013.
Synopsis
Born in Virginia in 1912, Dorothy Height was a civil rights and women's rights activist focused primarily on improving the circumstances of and opportunities for African-American women. She was a leader in addressing the rights of both women and African Americans as the president of the National Council of Negro Women. In the 1990s, she drew young people into her cause in the war against drugs,
Contents
Quotes
"I have been in the proximity of, and threatened by, the Klan; I have been called everything people of color are called; I have been denied admission because of a quota. I've had all of that, but I've also learned that getting bitter is not the way."
"[Dorothy Height] understood that women's rights and civil rights are indivisible. She stood up for the rights of women every chance she had."
illiteracy and unemployment. The numerous honors bestowed upon her include the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1994) and the Congressional Gold Medal (2004). She died on April 20, 2010, in Washington, D.C.
Early Life
Born on March 24, 1912, in Richmond, Virginia, African-American activist Dorothy Height spent her life fighting for civil rights and women's rights. The daughter of a building contractor and a nurse, Height moved with her family to Rankin, Pennsylvania, in her youth. There, she attended racially integrated schools.
In high school, Height showed great talent as an orator. She also became socially and politically active, participating in anti-lynching campaigns. Height's skills as a speaker took her all the way to a national oratory competition. Winning the event, she was awarded a college scholarship.
Height had applied to and been accepted to Barnard College in New York, but as the start of school neared, the college changed its mind about her admittance, telling Height that they had already met their quota for black students. Undeterred, she applied to New York University, where she would earn two degrees: a bachelor's degree in education in 1930 and a master's degree in psychology in 1932.
Tireless Activist
After working for a time as a social worker, Height joined the staff of the Harlem YWCA in 1937. She had a life-changing encounter not long after starting work there. Height met educator and founder of the National Council of Negro Women Mary McLeod Bethune when Bethune and U.S. first lady Eleanor Roosevelt came to visit her facility. Height soon volunteered with the NCNW and became close to McLeod.
One of Height's major accomplishments at the YWCA was directing the integration of all of its centers in 1946. She also established its Center for Racial Justice in 1965, which she ran until 1977. In 1957, Height became the president of the National Council of Negro Women. Through the center and the council, she became one of the leading figures of the Civil Rights Movement. Height worked with Martin Luther King Jr., A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young, John Lewis and James Farmer—sometimes called the "Big Six" of the Civil Rights Movement—on different campaigns and initiatives.
In 1963, Height was one of the organizers of the famed March on Washington. She stood close to Martin Luther King Jr. when he delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. Despite her skills as a speaker and a leader, Height was not invited to talk that day.
Height later wrote that the March on Washington event had been an eye-opening experience for her. Her male counterparts "were happy to include women in the human family, but there was no question as to who headed the household," she said, according to the Los Angeles Times.
profile name: Dorothy Height profile occupation:
Your Connections
Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.
Profile Connections
Included In These Groups
-
Famous Arians 535 people in this group
-
Famous Black Activists
View groupAfrican-Americans have a long history of activism in America, from fighting for the right to vote to pushing for integrated public spaces. Activists like Stokely Carmichael organized freedom rides, James Meredith fought to integrate blacks and whites at the University of Mississippi, and Rosa Parks instigated the Montgomery Bus Boycott. These protests were often legal and nonviolent, and made a powerful impact on civil rights in the United States. With the help of activists like these—and many others—the country slowly worked to acknowledge the basic rights and contributions of African-Americans. Activists outisde of the U.S. include Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela, who have fought against apartheid in South Africa. Learn more about the many black activists who fought against the odds in order to achieve equality.
Famous Black Activists 133 people in this group
-
Famous Civil Rights Activists
View group"Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love." Stated by legendary civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., these words represent a basic human philosophy to which black history's greatest leaders have passionately subscribed. Learn more about the world's most revered civil rights activists, known for their fight against social injustices and lasting impact on the lives of black citizens, including Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Nelson Mandela, Nina Simone, Mary McLeod Bethune, Lena Horne, Marva Collins, Rosa Parks, W.E.B. Du Bois, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.
Famous Civil Rights Activists 156 people in this group
